Their Finest Hour, September 11, 2008: The Flight Crew and Passengers of United 93

September 11, 2001. The United States has been thrust into a war we did not start, and did not want, but one we will win. The opening front of this war was not on some far flung battlefield, nor was it contested by those in uniform. The first cowardly attacks by Islamofascist terrorists were inflicted upon civilians on airplanes, then the World Trade Center, then the Pentagon.

Due to air traffic delays, United Airlines Flight 93 departed late from Newark, NJ on its trip to California. Those aboard who were able to communicate with authorities or loved ones on the ground learned of the attack on our Nation. They learned about the intent of the hijackers. They deduced that their Boeing 757 was no longer a means of conveyance - it had become a manned cruise missile en route to a likely target in the Nation's capital.

Their situation was clear. They knew that there was only one option.

They rose up. They fought back.

United 93 crashed into a field in Pennsylvania, not that far away from my home in the Pittsburgh area. We don't know all the details about the attempt to retake control of United 93, but while the flight and its passengers were lost, our Nation was saved from a greater tragedy.

September 11, 2001 is a dark day in our Nation's history. It was the beginning of the War on Terror and a day of immesurable tragedy. We must not forget that today was also the day of our first victory in the war, thanks to those aboard United 93.

We owe them much. We honor their sacrifice, and we go forward in knowing that the American Spirit is indomitable in the face of our enemies, even when faced by death.

This was their finest hour.