11/09/2001 | N644AA | American Airlines flight 77 departed runway 30 at Washington/Dulles International for the 4+ hour flight to Los Angeles at 8:10 local time; on board the aircraft were 58 passengers (including 5 hijackers), four flight attendants and the two pilots; shortly after departure, the aircraft disappeared from FAA radar screens and ceased responding to air traffic control radio transmissions.
The aircraft was turned around and flown back towards Washington, D.C. from the north; the aircraft then reportedly proceeded to descend over the White House, entered a tight 270° turn, and flew towards the U.S. Department of Defense Building (Pentagon) in Northern Virginia; witnesses reported that the aircraft clipped trees and light posts as it descended at an high rate of speed, before impacting the south-west face of the Pentagon Building. |