Betty Ong - Betty Ong's Phone Call

Betty Ong: Um, we're sitting in the back, um, and the cockpit is not answering. Somebody is stabbed in business class-and um, I think there's mace-that we can't breathe-I don't know I think we're getting hijacked.

A.A. Oper. Center: Which flight are you on?

Betty Ong: Flight 12

A.A. Oper. Center: And what seat are you in?

(Brief Silence)

A.A. Oper. Center: Ma'am, are you there?

Betty Ong: Yes.

A.A. Oper. Center: What, what, what seat are you in?

(Brief Silence)

A.A. Oper. Center: Ma'am, what seat are you in?

Betty Ong: Well, we just left Boston, we're up in the air. We're supposed to go to L.A., and the cockpit's not answering their phone.

A.A. Oper. Center: What seat are you sitting in? What's the number of your seat?

Betty Ong: Okay, I'm in my jump-seat right now.

A.A. Oper. Center: Okay.

Betty Ong: At 3R.

A.A. Oper. Center: Okay, you're the flight attendant?

(Brief Silence)

A.A. Oper. Center: I'm sorry, did you say you're the flight attendant?

Betty Ong: Hello? You're gonna have to speak up. I can't hear you.

A.A. Oper. Center: Sure, what is your name?

Betty Ong: Okay, my name is Betty Ong, I'm #3 on Flight 11.

A.A. Oper. Center: Okay.

Betty Ong: And the cockpit is not answering their phone, and there's somebody stabbed in business class, and there's, we can't breathe in business class. Somebody's got mace, or something.

A.A. Oper. Center: Can you describe the person that you said, somebody is what in business class?

Betty Ong: I'm, I'm sitting in the back somebody's coming back from business, can you hold on for one second? They're coming back.

A.A. Oper. Center: Sure.

(Ong is heard talking to another flight attendant aboard American 11.)

Betty Ong: They want to know who stabbed who. Do you know?

Flight Attendant: I don't know, but Karen and Barbara got stabbed. (Karen and Barbara are the two first/business class flight attendants who got stabbed)

Betty Ong: Okay.

(Ong returns to conversation with A.A. Operations Center)

Betty Ong: Our, our #1 is, got stabbed, uh, our purser is stabbed. Um, nobody knows who stabbed who, and we can't even get up to business class right now because nobody can breathe. Uh, our #1 is, is, is, stabbed right now. And, and our #5 is stabbed. Our first class passengers are, uh, first class galley flight attendant and our purser have been stabbed. And we can't get to the cockpit... the, the door won't open.

(Brief Silence)

Betty Ong: Hello?

A.A. Oper. Center: Yeah, I'm taking it down, all the information. We're also, um, you know of course, recording, the, um, at this point in time.

Nydia Gonzalez: This is operations, what flight number are we talking about?

A.A. Oper. Center: Flight 12.

Nydia Gonzalez: Flight 12, okay.

Betty Ong: No, we're on Flight 11 right now. This is Flight 11.

A.A. Oper. Center: It's Flight 11. I'm sorry, Nydia.

Betty Ong: Boston to Los Angeles.

A.A. Oper. Center: Yes.

Betty Ong: Our #1 has been stabbed, and our #5 has been stabbed.

(Ong is heard talking to another flight attendant aboard American 11)

Betty: Can anybody get up to the cockpit? Can anybody get up to the cockpit?

Flight Attendant: No, we can't.

(Ong returns to conversation with A.A. Operations Center and Nydia Gonzalez)

Betty Ong: Okay, we can't even get up to the cockpit, we don't know who's up there.

A.A. Oper. Canter: Well, if they were shrewd, they would keep the door closed and...

(Ong doesn't hear this last comment)

Betty Ong: I'm sorry?

A.A. Oper. Center: Would they not maintain a sterile cockpit?

Betty Ong: I think the guys are up there, they might have gone there or jammed their way up there, or, or something. Nobody can call the cockpit, we can't even get inside.

(Brief Silence)

Betty Ong: Is anybody still there?

A.A. Oper. Center: Yes, we're still here.

Betty Ong: Okay, I'm staying on the line as well.

A.A. Oper. Center: Okay.

Nydia Gonzalez: Hi, who is this calling reservations? Is this one of the flight attendants? Who are you, hun?

A.A. Oper. Center: She gave her name as Betty Ong.

Nydia Gonzalez: Betty?

Betty Ong: Yeah, I'm #3. I'm #3 on this flight, and we're first...

Nydia Gonzalez: You're the #3 on this flight?

Betty Ong: Yes, and I have...

Nydia Gonzalez: And this is Flight 11? From where to where?

Betty Ong: Flight 11.

Nydia Gonzalez: Have you guys called anyone else?

Betty Ong: No. Uh, somebody's calling medical, and we can't get a doctor.

(American Airlines Emergency Line (identified as A.A. Em. Line) joins the call and talks to Gonzalez)

A.A. Em. Line: American Airlines Emergency Line, please state your emergency.

Nydia Gonzalez: Hey, this is Nydia at American Airlines calling. I am monitoring a call in which Flight 11. The flight attendant is advising our reps that the pilot, everyone has been stabbed.

A.A. Em. Line: Flight 11?

Nydia Gonzalez: Yeah, they can't get into the cockpit. That's what I'm hearing.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, who is this I'm talking to?

Nydia Gonzalez: Excuse me, this is Nydia at American Airlines Raleigh Reservations Center. I'm the operations specialist on duty.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, I'm sorry what is your name, again?

Nydia Gonzalez: Nydia Gonzalez, G-O-N-Z-A-L-E-Z.

A.A. Em. Line: Raleigh Reservations. Okay, now when you...

Nydia Gonzalez: I've got the flight attendant on the line, with one of our agents.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, and she's calling how?

Nydia Gonzalez: Through reservations, I can go on the line and ask her questions.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, and I'm assuming they've declared an emergency. Let me get ATC on the line, stand by.

Nydia Gonzalez: Have you been contacted by the cockpit yet? No, okay. Okay, I'm still on with security, Betty, okay? Okay. You, you're doing a great job, Betty, just stay calm. We are, absolutely.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, we're contacting the flight crew now, we're also contacting ATC.

Nydia Gonzalez: Okay, it seems like the passengers in coach might not be aware of what's going on right now.

A.A. Em. Line: These two passengers, were they from first class?

Nydia Gonzalez: Uh, okay. Hold on.

Nydia Gonzalez: Hey, Betty, do you know any information as far as the gents, the men that are in the cockpit with the pilots, were they from first class?

Betty Ong: They were sitting in 2A and B.

Nydia Gonzalez: They were sitting in 2A and B.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay.

Nydia Gonzalez: They are in the cockpit with the pilots.

A.A. Em. Line: Who's helping them? Is there a doctor on board?

Nydia Gonzalez: Is there a doctor on board that's assisting you guys? You don't have any doctors on board. Okay. So, you've gotten all the first class passengers out of first class?

A.A. Em. Line: Have the flight attendants taken everyone out of first class?

Nydia Gonzalez: Yeah, she's just saying that they have. They're in coach. What's going on, honey?

Betty Ong: Okay, the aircraft is erratic again. Flying very erratically.

Nydia Gonzalez: She did say all the first class passengers have been moved back to coach, so first class, the cabin is empty. What's going on on your end?

A.A. Em. Line: Uh, we contacted ATC, they are going to handle this as a confirmed hijacking. So they're moving all the traffic out of this aircraft's way.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay.

A.A. Em. Line: Uh, he turned his transponder off, so we don't have a definitive altitude for him. We're just going by, they seem to think that they have him on a primary radar. They seem to think he is descending.

Nydia Gonzalez: Okay.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay, Nydia?

Nydia Gonzalez: Yes, dear, I'm here.

A.A. Em. Line: I have a dispatcher currently taking the amount of fuel on board.

Nydia Gonzalez: Uh, huh.

A.A. Em. Line: And, we're gonna run some profiles, to see exactly what his endurance is.

Nydia Gonzales: Okay.

A.A. Em. Line: Did she?

Nydia Gonzalez: She doesn't have any idea who the stabbed passenger might be in first. Apparently, they might have spread something, so they're having a hard time breathing or getting in that area.

(Plane struck World Trade Center)

Nydia Gonzalez: What's going on, Betty? Betty, talk to me. Betty, are you there? Betty? What? Do you think we lost her? Okay, so, we'll like keep the line open. We— I think we might have lost her.

A.A. Em. Line: Okay.