A reminder on 9/11

A hallmark of Al Qaeda attacks was - is - simultaneity. If multiple attacks happen at or nearly at the same time, there's a good chance Al Qaeda is behind it.

The attacks on the World Trade Center weren't simultaneous, but were very nearly so. The attack on the Pentagon, too. And as these attacks were going on, Flight 93 was headed for a field in western Pennsylvania.

Because it was delayed.

Where would it have gone if the terrorists' takeover hadn't been frustrated? The U.S. Capitol? The White House? We don't know. We'll probably never know.

But because it was delayed, it was still a long way from its intended target when news of the attacks in New York and Washington D.C. broke. The passengers heard this news and realized that their plane was another flying weapon of mass destruction. They were able to attack the hijackers and ruin their plan.

Who put the plane into the ground? The hijackers, or the passengers? It almost doesn't matter. But in another sense, the fact that it went down averted another tragedy, different from the tragedies in New York and Washington D.C. Had the plane continued on its course, it would likely have been intercepted and destroyed by scrambled fighter jets. It might have come down in pieces over a populated area. The scars of 9/11 would include guilt over the destruction of Flight 93 and the deaths of everyone on board due to it being shot down.

But that's not what happened. Because Flight 93 was delayed, the passengers had a chance to learn about what was going on, and fight back, and stop the fourth plane from getting where it was going.

Remember that next time you grumble about your flight being delayed.