CNN has an interesting piece on the aircraft controllers who witnessed the September 11 attacks from their ATC stations, powerless to do anything.
The professionalism of our nation’s air traffic controllers during those times, doing the unprecedented by grounding every aircraft in the air and accounting for all of them should be recognized. The kind of uncertainty made by the fog of war that morning was difficult enough, and many ATC operators believed at that moment that as many as 11 flights had been hijacked. They stayed at the posts, guided hundreds of flights to safety, and tried to account for the entirety of US air traffic. It was a daunting task, and one that was handled with professionalism and bravery in the face of terror.
