

Here is another oddity surrounding the 9/11 attacks. Two new entries in the Complete 9/11 Timeline reveal that a New York air traffic controller mistakenly reported over an FAA teleconference that the first aircraft to crash into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 was a helicopter, and this hit the north WTC tower at 8:27 a.m., almost 20 minutes before the attack there actually occurred.

At around 10:15 a.m. on September 11, Tom White, an operations manager at the FAA's New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON), reported that the replaying of radar data had confirmed that the Sikorsky helicopter was "the only target that we saw in the vicinity of the Trade Center ... to fly into the Trade Center" at 8:27 a.m. This helicopter, White said, had taken off from Dutchess County Airport, about 70 miles north of New York City, at 8:03 a.m. Earlier on, at about 9:55 a.m., the New York TRACON had in fact mistakenly told the FAA teleconference that the first aircraft to hit the WTC was a small twin-engine plane.

It apparently took until early afternoon for White's erroneous information to be dismissed. FAA timelines state that at around 1:00 p.m., the "Sikorsky helicopter" was "now believed not to have hit the WTC," and it was reported to have in fact "landed 20 minutes early, normal GE run at 12:28Z [i.e. 8:28 a.m. Eastern time] to WTC." But if the helicopter landed "20 minutes early," does this mean it was scheduled to reach the WTC at 8:47 or 8:48 a.m.? That would have been around the time the first plane crashed there.

This is certainly curious! Were these incorrect reports about what hit the North Tower just innocent mistakes amid the confusion caused by the terrorist attacks? Or was there something more sinister behind them? For example, might they have been intended to get misinformation into the system and create confusion, as part of an attempt to slow the emergency response to the attacks? At the very least, investigators should determine the identity of the Sikorsky helicopter, find out who was on it, and check why it was flying to the World Trade Center at that particular time.

8:27 a.m. September 11, 2001: Radar Shows Helicopter Apparently Crashing into WTC

A helicopter is tracked on radar apparently crashing into the World Trade Center, according to a report later given by a New York air traffic controller over an FAA teleconference.

Helicopter Is 'the Only Target that We Saw ... to Fly into the Trade Center' - At around 10:15 a.m., Tom White, an operations manager at the FAA's New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON), will tell those on the FAA teleconference that his facility tracked a Sikorsky helicopter that had taken off from the airport in Poughkeepsie, New York, and this helicopter appeared to fly into the WTC at 8:27 a.m. (see (10:15 a.m.) September 11, 2001). White will add that, after replaying radar information, it is concluded that the helicopter is "the only target that we saw in the vicinity of the Trade Center at 12:27 [Zulu time, or 8:27 a.m. Eastern time] to fly into the Trade Center." [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001; 9/11 Commission, 5/21/2004] (However, the first crash at the WTC will not occur until 8:46 a.m. (see 8:46 a.m. September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 7]) The "Poughkeepsie airport" the helicopter took off from is presumably Dutchess County Airport. Sikorsky reportedly bases a fleet of its S-76 helicopters at Dutchess County Airport, "dispatching them to the New York metro areas as needed." [Site Selection, 5/2000; Aviation International News, 8/1/2003] Poughkeepsie is about 70 miles north of New York City. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 2/3/2008]

Helicopter 'Consistent with the Speed' of What Hits WTC - White will say the helicopter's tail number is N7601S, that it departed the Poughkeepsie airport at 8:03 a.m., and that it then headed south at a speed of around 160 knots, or 184 miles per hour. He will add: "The tower [presumably the air traffic control tower at the Poughkeepsie airport] says the only thing they had southbound at that time was a Sikorsky helicopter, which is consistent with the speed that we followed it down.... They're saying they replayed the radar and it's consistent with the speed of what went into the [WTC] tower." [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001] (However, an analysis by the US government will later estimate that Flight 11 hits the WTC at 494 miles per hour, or 429 knots, which is significantly faster than the helicopter was flying. [New York Times, 2/23/2002])

Mistaken Information Later Corrected - It will apparently take until early afternoon for the suspicions about the Sikorsky helicopter hitting the WTC to be dismissed. An FAA chronology of this day's events will state that at 1:00 p.m., the "Sikorsky helicopter" is "now believed not to have hit the WTC." [Federal Aviation Administration, 1/2/2002] Another FAA chronology will state that at 1:04 p.m., it is reported that the Sikorsky helicopter "landed 20 minutes early, normal GE run at 12:28Z [i.e. 8:28 a.m. Eastern time] to WTC." (It is unclear what is meant by "normal GE run.") [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001]

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(10:15 a.m.) September 11, 2001: Air Traffic Controller Mistakenly Reports that First Aircraft to Hit WTC Was a Helicopter

Tom White, a New York air traffic controller, incorrectly reports over an FAA teleconference that the first aircraft to hit the World Trade Center appears to have been a Sikorsky helicopter. [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001; Federal Aviation Administration, 1/2/2002; 9/11 Commission, 5/21/2004] White is an operations manager at the FAA's New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) in Westbury, Long Island. [9/11 Commission, 12/15/2003] He says over the FAA teleconference that the Sikorsky helicopter had been heading south from Poughkeepsie, New York, and appeared to hit the WTC at 8:27 a.m. (see 8:27 a.m. September 11, 2001)--nearly 20 minutes before the first crash there actually took place (see 8:46 a.m. September 11, 2001).

TRACON Previously Said Small Plane Hit the WTC - About 20 minutes earlier, someone from the TRACON--presumably White--suggested over the teleconference that the first aircraft to hit the WTC was a small twin-engine plane. At around 9:55 a.m. they said: "I think we've identified the location of a departure point for aircraft number one [presumably a reference to the plane that hit the North Tower]. At approximately 12:03 Zulu time [i.e. 8:03 a.m. Eastern time], aircraft number one appears to have departed Poughkeepsie airport and established a southerly heading at a speed of about 160 knots [i.e. 184 miles per hour]. The profile looks like it might be a light twin." Asked if they had any more information, the TRACON employee replied: "I tried to get in touch with Poughkeepsie tower. However, the phone lines are overloaded and the circuits are busy." [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001] The "Poughkeepsie airport" the helicopter took off from is presumably Dutchess County Airport. Sikorsky bases a fleet of its S-76 helicopters at Dutchess County Airport, which it dispatches to the New York metro areas as needed. [Site Selection, 5/2000; Aviation International News, 8/1/2003] Poughkeepsie is about 70 miles north of New York City. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 2/3/2008]

Radar Information Suggests Helicopter Hit WTC - White now gives an update over the FAA teleconference, and suggests the first aircraft to hit the WTC was in fact a helicopter. He says: "We tracked a Sikorsky helicopter... from Poughkeepsie to the Trade Center. It appeared to fly into the Trade Center at 12:27 [Zulu time, or 8:27 a.m. Eastern time]. That is preliminary information." White then clarifies that this conclusion has been reached partly through replaying radar data. He says: "[T]he only target that we saw in the vicinity of the Trade Center at 12:27, to fly into the Trade Center, we, we played the radar and tracked it up through Westchester and Stewart. We had a departure off a Poughkeepsie at 12:03. The tower says the only thing they had southbound at that time was a Sikorsky helicopter, which is consistent with the speed that we followed it down." [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001; Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001]

Long Delay before False Information Is Corrected - The New York TRACON's reports about a helicopter or small plane hitting the WTC are subsequently confirmed to be mistaken. However it apparently takes several hours before the erroneous information is corrected. David LaCates, the deputy operations manager at the FAA's New York Center, will tell the 9/11 Commission that "he did hear rumors that the aircraft that struck the WTC was in fact a small airplane from Poughkeepsie," and he "believes this rumor persisted for over an hour." [9/11 Commission, 10/2/2003] According to one FAA chronology of this day's events, it is only at 1:00 p.m. that the "Sikorsky helicopter" is "now believed not to have hit the WTC." [Federal Aviation Administration, 1/2/2002] Another FAA chronology will state that at 1:04 p.m. it is reported that the Sikorsky helicopter "landed 20 minutes early, normal GE run at 12:28Z [i.e. 8:28 a.m. Eastern time] to WTC." (It is unclear what is meant by "normal GE run.") [Federal Aviation Administration, 9/11/2001]

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