9/11 Commission records unsealed

[Cheap Shot]

I'm wondering if we have all the recordings that are available, though. Do you remember what you heard at the DoJ?

They only got about 20 of my phone calls, about 9 or 10 of them were in the Vanity Fair Article, the other 20 calls they did not have. I used four different phone numbers that I knew that day, so I beleive only two of those phone numbers were recorded.

 

[MikeW]

They only got about 20 of my phone calls, about 9 or 10 of them were in the Vanity Fair Article, the other 20 calls they did not have. I used four different phone numbers that I knew that day, so I beleive only two of those phone numbers were recorded.

Hmm, I think the NORAD tapes we've seen so far don't have nearly as many as that. When I have some time I'll make a list of your calls that are available so far & the content of each, maybe you can help us figure out what we're missing?

 

[MikeW]

I've uploaded another 9/11 Commission document (sourced via History Commons). This one contains handwritten notes on an NTSB briefing where they use the flight data recorder and other information to figure out what might have happened on flights 77 and 93.

Observations include a) they think the flight 93 "bomb on board" message was intended for the outside world, b) doesn't think flight 93 passengers got into the cockpit, c) something odd about flipping through the UHF dial and "lights on an ATIS for runway in Penn" (??, fun for truthers anyway), maybe as they say because he can't figure out how to use the radio, d) some references to NORAD that I don't understand, e) more details on the CVR, f) suggestions that Jarrah used a highway and map to help figure out where he was, g) suggestion that the loud air sound on flight 93 might have been fire extinguishers, h) reference to the supposed "white smoke" and "explosion" reports from Ed Felt, i) Hanjour "nailed the turn" before hitting the Pentagon, and j) loads of other things, perhaps more important.

So, this is an essential document if you ever get involved in any "what happened on Flight 93" threads, and you'll find a copy here.

 

[MikeW]

I realise that anyone who still says "Marvin Bush was the head of security at the WTC" is an idiot, and best ignored... But still, it's interesting to see what the real security situation was. Here's a few details from a recent 9/11 Commission folder uploaded by History Commons (PA=Port Authority, SPI = Silverstein Properties):

NOTE ON FIRE SAFETY/SECURITY EMPLOYEES:
While the PA still controlled the WTC, the fire safety director was as PA employee. He supervised a staff of deputy fire safety directors ("DFSD's"). DFSD's were employed by an outside company, OCS Security, which was contracted to the PA and, as of the transfer, to SPI. Security guards stationed throughout the building were employees of Summit Security, also contracted to the PA, and subsequently, SPI. As of the closing of the net lease deal, PA contracts with OCS, Summit, ABM and other companies providing resources/services for the WTC were assigned to SPI.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/16403956/...n-Properties-Inc-Fdr-Entire-Contents-MFRs-750

The document also shows that if there was foreknowledge of the attacks at SPI, it didn't extend far:

Before the transfer of control, the Port Authority's Life Safety Director served as the complex's fire safety director. SPI designated the fire safety director from 7 WTC (SPI run) to replace the Port Authority life safety director in this role. The PA FSD was on the SPI transition team and his day-to-day functions may have been similar to what they were previously, but, after the transfer, he reported to the SPI-appointed FSD. The SPI director of fire safety perished on September 11.

 

[MikeW]

One classic truther fiction is that Cheney himself said he was in the PEOC before the Pentagon was hit. Here's David Ray Griffin distorting the truth in his usual fashion:

The 9/11 Commission’s account even contradicted that given by Cheney himself in a well-known interview. Speaking to Tim Russert on NBC’s Meet the Press only five days after 9/11, Cheney said: “[A]fter I talked to the president... I went down into... the Presidential Emergency Operations Center... [W]hen I arrived there within a short order, we had word the Pentagon's been hit.” Cheney himself, therefore, indicated that he had entered the PEOC prior to the (9:38) strike on the Pentagon, not 20 minutes after it, as the Commission would later claim.
http://www.agoracosmopolitan.com/home/Frontpage/2008/01/22/02147.html

In reality, a) the full interview is entirely consistent with the 9/11 Commission's evacuation time of around 9:36, and b) receiving "word the Pentagon's been hit" isn't something that would happen instantly: the most you can say is that Cheney arrived before this "word" did.

This has always been obvious enough, but now it's clarified by a 9/11 Commission document from History Commons collection, a transcript of an interview with Cheney from September 5 2002.

Well, the plane didn't hit the White House, obviously. It circled around and did a complete 360, and that's the one that went into the Pentagon. So, when I got down into the tunnel, we saw that the Pentagon had been hit. That was on television. And I called the President again -- he was then headed for the airport in Florida -- and urged him not to return to
Washington, because Washington was now under attack and we didn't
know the scope of it or anything.

And then from there we went on to the Presidential Emergency Operations Center. But I didn't know, even immediately, that it was an airliner that had hit the Pentagon. The first reports was it was a helicopter, because where it hit was next to the helipad on the west side of the building. It was only later that Secretary Rumsfeld confirmed that it was in fact an aircraft, and that we figured out it was the one that had been headed for the White House and had circled back and hit the Pentagon.
http://911myths.com/index.php/Image:NYC_Box9_FarmerMisc-Cheney-Interview-5Sep02.pdf

So: in the PEOC tunnel Cheney sees that something has happened but doesn't know what. The copy of Lynne Cheney's notes confirms that there were various reports just after 10am about what had happened at the Pentagon. Then Cheney receives "word that the Pentagon's been hit" by a plane when Rumsfeld returns from the crash site.

Simples.

 

[MikeW]

More Cheney/ Mineta/ PEOC-related material.

Cheney says he was evacuated shortly after seeing Bush deliver his first statement (9:30-ish).

Cheney says Mineta arrived at the PEOC around the same time as him (though he can't remember the precise sequence), and the FAA, not Mineta, delivered the ground stop order.

Timelines of 9/11 events according to various interviews by Condoleezza Rice.

As usual, nothing to support Cheney being at the PEOC proper before 9:20, as per Mineta, and plenty indicating otherwise.

 

[bill smith]

The US National Archives have announced that they'll be releasing the first batch of 9/11 Commission records to the public at 9:00 AM EST tomorrow (14th January):



(More details at the link.)

The description - "summaries of 709 interviews" doesn't sound too interesting, but other information I've seen suggests there will be a lot of detailed documents released. So browse archives.gov tomorrow, then share useful links, intriguing interview snippets or anything else you've discovered (that doesn't justify a thread of its own) here.

This is good news indeed. The truth Movement can only advance from this. Even this no doubt sanitised version will contain information they did not intend to make known. That's the benefit of having hundreds of thusands if not millions of dedicated researchers all around the world.

You debunkers can see if you can find something too though from long experience we will look very carefully at whatever you find. We don't trust anything about the 9/11 commission report as you know.

 

[MikeW]

I've been working through the History Commons backlog, and today in particular noticed some really interesting documents.

Take Interavia, for instance. Here's the core information from an FBI document:

Interavia Pakistan, Ltd, (IPL) Karachi, Pakistan, had booked 7 seats on AA flight 11, bound from Boston to Los Angeles. The reservation had been made at 9:03 GMT. The reservations were made in a block of 4 and a block of 3 in the following names:

Mr. K. Cooper
Mrs. S. Cooper
Ms. A. Cooper
Ms. P. Cooper

Ms. 0. Noris
Ms. E. Noris
Ms. W. Noris

At the same time reservations for the listed subjects were also made on Trans World Airlines (TWA) flight 342, bound from Los Angeles to St. Louis. Both sets of reservations were made for flights on September 11, 2001. AA flight 11 was scheduled to depart at 7:45 a.m. eastern standard time and arrive in Los Angeles at 10:59 a.m. pacific standard time. TWA flight 342 was scheduled to depart at 7:55 a.m. pacific standard time and arrive at 1:24 p.m. central standard time.
http://911myths.com/index.php/Image:Team7_Box21_INTERVIA.pdf

The Noris's and Coopers didn't show up for flight 11. As they were also booked for flight 342, and couldn't have taken both, this suggests something beyond a coincidence. Anyway, a quick skim through the file shows the story just seemed to fizzle out, but take a look anyway and see what you think.

 

[MikeW]

There were four (at least) hijacker passports recovered from the various crash sites. The INS forensic labs analysed them, and you can read the results here: Ziad Jarrah, Saeed al-Ghamdi, Satam al-Suqami, and Abdulaziz al-Omari.

 

[MikeW]

This PENTTBOM memo talks about a CD recovered in Pakistan. This contained images of the passports of Khalid al-Mihdhar, Abdulaziz al-Omari, Salem al-Hazmi, and a previously unknown "Saud A. S. Al-Rasheed", whose "name may indicate that he is some how related to the Saudi Royal Family". So: a little evidence to link these three hijackers together. Read it here.

 

[MikeW]

Waleed Ahmed al-Shehri, a pilot and the son of a diplomat, is plainly not the same person as the 9/11 hijacker Waleed Mohamed al-Shehri. Truthers like to pretend the FBI simply ignored these identification issues, but that's untrue - you can read the FBI saying they're not the same man in this document.

 

[MikeW]

If you've spent time reading accounts from the WTC then you'll probably remember Stanley Prainmath talking about getting trapped in the south tower, and how Brian Clark saved him. The Commission had shortish interview summaries with them here and here.

 

[MikeW]

Annnnd just a few others, if you're in the mood to do some reading.

Did 9/11 really save the PANY money? Read a draft report on the economic impact of 9/11.

Here's a 166-page file on hijacker visa applications, with a particular focus on Mohamed Atta.

The very interesting notes of Jim Slate from the Dulles tower, who recorded what happened on 9/11 (when he was alerted to an incoming plane, who he spoke to and so on). Read them here.

And I forgot to add earlier, the Abdulaziz al-Omari passport analysis document also has new material on one of the "still alive" al-Omaris, including pictures. Read it here.

 

[EvilBiker]

Just wanted to say thanks, MikeW.

Too much information! Keeping me awake at nights!

 

[MikeW]

No problem! This is the only really interesting bit for me now, uncovering new bits of information and putting them together, so it doesn't feel like a chore. Although I know what you mean, the sheer volume of documents does make my head hurt sometimes.

 

[Audible Click]

I admire all of the debunkers on the 9/11 threads. You've amassed a mountain of facts with all the backup information. I may not post much in these threads but I read them all and only wish I was as knowledgable and articulate as all of you.

 

[MikeW]

History Commons have just uploaded the scenario for the NRO exercise on 9/11 (the one where a plane crashed in the NRO compound). It says that the plane in the scenario was a Lear jet; it crashed shortly after take-off following a fire; and the exercise wouldn't have begun to involve most NRO employees until after 9:30. Mostly we knew this anyway, but if you're tired of people breathlessly telling you that "the military were running war games of the exact same attack scenario on 9/11" then this is worth a look.

 

[MikeW]

We often hear that "no-one lost their job as a result of failings on 9/11". Of course that's one of those truther claims that has a hidden proviso - "as far as I know" - which means it's not quite so impressive as it initially sounds.

As a small example of someone who would disagree, check this 9/11 Commission interview with Virginia Buckingham, former director of MASSPORT (airport authority responsible for Logan). While she resigned her position in November 2001, it doesn't look like an entirely voluntary move. The interview opens with her talking of bearing "the burden of having been unfairly blamed for the events of 9/11", and ends with this conclusion:

Buckingham pointed to the fact that the same tactics used at Logan succeeded at three other airports (Portland, ME; Dulles; Newark) as indicative of the national vulnerability, and compelling evidence the hijackers didn't single out Logan. The political culture in Boston has led some to ignore that reality, but to give the impression that Logan was somehow different, and more vulnerable, does a disservice to everyone. She herself was publicly blamed and lost her job unfairly because of this, and it means a lot to her to set the record straight.

 

[MikeW]

A small, but useful development.

As you probably know, there's been plenty of controversy over Barbara Olson's call from Flight 77. Truthers who want to claim there were no hijackers have to try and discredit it, so they'll say Ted Olson "changed his story" over whether it was from an airfone or not, have claimed there were no airfones on Flight 77 anyway, and so on.

Somewhere back in this thread I posted a link to an FBI report on a Mercy Lorenzo, an AT&T operator who said she'd received a call from a woman on Flight 77 asking to be forwarded to her husband in Washington. Olson? Sounded like it, but the report said the husband was a "sergeant", and the number was redacted, so we couldn't be sure.

But now that's all changed, and here, for the first time in public since NARA sent it to me this morning, is the unredacted version:

(Full PDF version is here, if you need it)

Google for "202 514 2201" and it turns up various people in the Solicitor General's office, and this is also the number identified with Ted Olson in another document.

So, for the first time ever we've a named direct witness to Olson's experience aside from her husband, as well as some support for it being an airfone call (AT&T reportedly handled the airfones on flight 77). Small news, as I said, and the truthers will say "it's fake" or "it doesn't prove it was her", but anyway I still think it's a solid step forward.

 

[ElMondoHummus]

A small, but useful development.

As you probably know, there's been plenty of controversy over Barbara Olson's call from Flight 77. Truthers who want to claim there were no hijackers have to try and discredit it, so they'll say Ted Olson "changed his story" over whether it was from an airfone or not, have claimed there were no airfones on Flight 77 anyway, and so on.

Somewhere back in this thread I posted a link to an FBI report on a Mercy Lorenzo, an AT&T operator who said she'd received a call from a woman on Flight 77 asking to be forwarded to her husband in Washington. Olson? Sounded like it, but the report said the husband was a "sergeant", and the number was redacted, so we couldn't be sure.

But now that's all changed, and here, for the first time in public since NARA sent it to me this morning, is the unredacted version:

http://911myths.com/images/d/da/265A-NY-280350-302-22170-Unredacted.png

(Full PDF version is here, if you need it)

Google for "202 514 2201" and it turns up various people in the Solicitor General's office, and this is also the number identified with Ted Olson in another document.

So, for the first time ever we've a named direct witness to Olson's experience aside from her husband, as well as some support for it being an airfone call (AT&T reportedly handled the airfones on flight 77). Small news, as I said, and the truthers will say "it's fake" or "it doesn't prove it was her", but anyway I still think it's a solid step forward.

"Sergeant"... "Solicitor"... it's only a small stretch. And given the vagaries of human memory, I can definitely see this happening. Especially if english was not Ms. Lorenzo's first language, or if the connection wasn't perfect (and we're talking Airfones, right? So it probably wouldn't have been).

Good post, Mike! Excellent information. You're right, this is a direct tie.