The Only Plane In the Sky

The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 by Garrett M. Graff
Nonfiction - History
2019 Avid Reader Press
Finished on January 11, 2020
Rating: 5/5 (Excellent)

Publisher's Blurb:

The first comprehensive oral history of September 11, 2001—a panoramic narrative woven from the voices of Americans on the front lines of an unprecedented national trauma.

Over the past eighteen years, monumental literature has been published about 9/11, from Lawrence Wright’s The Looming Tower, which traced the rise of al-Qaeda, to The 9/11 Commission Report, the government’s definitive factual retrospective of the attacks. But one perspective has been missing up to this point—a 360-degree account of the day told through the voices of the people who experienced it.

Now, in The Only Plane in the Sky, award-winning journalist and bestselling historian Garrett Graff tells the story of the day as it was lived—in the words of those who lived it. Drawing on never-before-published transcripts, recently declassified documents, original interviews, and oral histories from nearly five hundred government officials, first responders, witnesses, survivors, friends, and family members, Graff paints the most vivid and human portrait of the September 11 attacks yet.

Beginning in the predawn hours of airports in the Northeast, we meet the ticket agents who unknowingly usher terrorists onto their flights, and the flight attendants inside the hijacked planes. In New York City, first responders confront a scene of unimaginable horror at the Twin Towers. From a secret bunker underneath the White House, officials watch for incoming planes on radar. Aboard the small number of unarmed fighter jets in the air, pilots make a pact to fly into a hijacked airliner if necessary to bring it down. In the skies above Pennsylvania, civilians aboard United Flight 93 make the ultimate sacrifice in their place. Then, as the day moves forward and flights are grounded nationwide, Air Force One circles the country alone, its passengers isolated and afraid.

More than simply a collection of eyewitness testimonies, The Only Plane in the Sky is the historic narrative of how ordinary people grappled with extraordinary events in real time: the father and son working in the North Tower, caught on different ends of the impact zone; the firefighter searching for his wife who works at the World Trade Center; the operator of in-flight telephone calls who promises to share a passenger’s last words with his family; the beloved FDNY chaplain who bravely performs last rites for the dying, losing his own life when the Towers collapse; and the generals at the Pentagon who break down and weep when they are barred from rushing into the burning building to try to rescue their colleagues.

At once a powerful tribute to the courage of everyday Americans and an essential addition to the literature of 9/11, The Only Plane in the Sky weaves together the unforgettable personal experiences of the men and women who found themselves caught at the center of an unprecedented human drama. The result is a unique, profound, and searing exploration of humanity on a day that changed the course of history, and all of our lives.

I have so many thoughts about this book. As I began, I discovered I couldn't stop reading, very much like that September morning 18 years ago when I couldn't stop watching the news. It brought back vivid memories of where I was, who I was with, and how the shocking events of the attacks unfolded before my eyes as I watched the news reports in disbelief and horror. Like Garrett Graff's excellent compilation of interviews and transcripts, I simply could not pull my gaze from the scenes. I was afraid there would be more attacks and I felt compelled to know what was happening at every moment. At that time, my teenage daughter and I were living in Texas and my husband was working in Nebraska, so I was even more anxious, not being together as a family to face whatever might come.

From the first pages of this outstanding narrative, I was quickly engrossed, reading far into the night, which was not particularly a good thing since my dreams were full of images of that terrible day. I noticed that as I read, I was holding my breath, literally on the edge of my seat, despite the fact that I knew the terrible outcome as I turned each page. Yet, the intimacy of the oral histories revealed so much more than I saw on the TV broadcasts.

I had considered listening to the audio version of this book, but I'm glad that I decided to go with the print. Each chapter is arranged in a format of individual accounts, noting the name, place of employment, or relationship to a family member involved in the attacks. Without those visual references, I would have lost track of who was who; the print version made it easy to flip back and forth, refreshing my memory of the specific individual describing a particular anecdote. I also think the audio book (and hear all of those stories, which are read by a full cast of actors) would gut me. 

Here are just a few passages that gave me pause:

For those at the tip of Lower Manhattan, the only viable evacuation route turned out to be the water. A makeshift, unorganized armada of more than 130 ferries, pleasure yachts, sightseeing vessels, Coast Guard and police vessels, fireboats, and tugboats gathered--many without being asked--at Battery Park and nearby piers. By the end of the day, they had collectively evacuated somewhere between 300,000 and 500,000 people from Manhattan--a maritime rescue larger than the World War II evacuation from Dunkirk.

and

James Luongo, inspector, NYPD: At one point, there had to be 200 construction workers walking down West Street. I said, "Who's in charge?" They said, "Nobody's in charge. We're here to help." I'll never forget those men--big burly guys, coming down. So much of that day, so much of that day was just New Yorkers. People who can help people. A lot of credit goes to the fire department. A lot of credit goes to the police department and emergency response people. But that's what we get paid for. The amount of New Yorkers--just everyday New Yorkers--who stepped up to the plate that day was incredible.

and

Ileana Mayorga, management specialist, Volunteer Arlington: At 1:00 the phone started ringing, people who wanted to come and help. I put the names of all these people in an Excel sheet and what it is that they wanted to do. They wanted to help dig out the people at the Pentagon. They wanted to secure the area themselves. They wanted to enlist to go and fight. I had a man who called and he said, "I am 80 years old. I still fit in my pilot uniform from World War II. I can still see. I can still hear. I have kept up with my training as a pilot. Tell whoever you can tell that I'm ready to report for duty." That broke my heart, this 80-year-old man saying that.

and

Ileana Mayorga: It was completely amazing, the feeling of support, of unity. I felt so proud that my community, the Hispanic community, were calling. Suddenly the phones were ringing and saying, "This is the country that we chose to come to. Nobody will destroy our country." They would say, "I'm not legal in the United States. Do you think they will accept me to do volunteer work?"

and

As the morning of September 11th passed, a stunned, wounded nation found itself enveloped in a quiet--businesses and schools closed, traffic thinned, the normal air traffic overhead fell silent. Many Americans, both ordinary civilians and government officials, were glued to the television, soaking in the news, overcome with emotion.

and

At Ground Zero, an impromptu bucket brigade had begun work, trying to sift through the acres of burning wreckage in hopes of finding survivors and recovering the dead. The fires at Ground Zero would burn for another 99 days, until they were finally extinguished for good on December 19.

and

Paul McFadden [firefighter, Rescue 2, FDNY]: When everything settled, I lost 46 friends. The were either my friends or they were sons of my friends. 

I've read two other books that deal with the horrors of 9/11. The first is The Usual Rules by Joyce Maynard (reviewed here). The second is a memoir by Abigail Carter called The Alchemy of Loss: A Young Widow's Transformation (reviewed here). Both are excellent and The Only Plane in the Sky has inspired me to pull them from my shelves for a second reading.

Click here to listen to the Garrett Graff explain his research process and motivation for creating this comprehensive and important oral history of 9/11.

We must never forget.