Air Force One
George W. Bush's Whirlwind Tour on September 11th
At 9:55 AM George W. Bush departed from the Sarasota, Florida airport on Air Force One. 1 Curiously, his plane took off without fighter escort. An administration official said: "The object seemed to be simply to get the President airborne and out of the way." 2 It was only after becoming airborne that Bush talked to Cheney and agreed to authorize the military to shoot down any hijacked planes, according to Bush's own recollection. 3 This alleged decision was made nearly an hour after second jet hit the World Trade Center.
At 10:32 AM, Cheney called Bush to tell him of a threat to Air Force One. 4
At 11:45 AM, Air Force One landed at Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana. At 12:00 noon, Bush arrived at Barksdale Air Force Base headquarters in a Humvee escorted by armed outriders. While at Barksdale, Bush made a speech, saying "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts." At 1:44 PM, Air Force One left Barksdale Air Force Base for Nebraska's Offutt Air Force Base. 5 6
At 2:50 PM, Air Force One landed at Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska. 7 Offutt is the home of the U.S. Strategic Command. At 4:30 PM, Air Force One took off from Offutt destined for Washington.
At 6:44 PM, Bush arrived at the White House.
References
2. Revealed: what really went on during Bush's 'missing hours', Telegraph, 12/16/01 [cached]
3. Air Attack on Pentagon Indicates Weaknesses, Newsday, 9/23/01 [cached]
4. America's Chaotic Road ..., Washington Post,
5. Events of September 11, 2001, MSNBC, 9/22/01 [cached]
6. The Tragic Timeline, The New York Times, 9/12/01 [cached]
7. America's Chaotic Road ..., Washington Post,