What was it like boarding an airplane right after the 9/11 attacks?

[Magnum Mike]

Originally Posted by South Range Family

There is a razor sharp crash axe strapped to the rear wall in the cockpit. Every time I taxied a plane to the hangar, I would have to move the axe from between the captain's seat, and the center pedestal.

That was the worst place they could have stashed it because it could have very easily gotten jammed in the rudder pedals. For those first few months, those guys were very scared.

A 9mm or .40 caliber S&W WILL stop any hijacker intrusion into the flight deck.

I know flight crews now are trained to handle firearms and use them when necessary, and they do have ammunition that does not pierce the cabin wall, which eliminates the chances of cabin depressurization.

[Magnum Mike]

To answer the question about boarding aircraft after the September 11th, 2001 attacks. My ex-girlfriend and I went to Los Cabos, Mexico in early September of 2002 and of course we had to go through the security screenings on the outbound and the return flights. It doesn't bother me anymore, even though we have to take our shoes off, after that idiot Muslim terrorist that was subdued by other passengers on an American Airlines Boeing 757, on a flight over the Atlantic when he tried to explode a bomb that was in one of his shoes. This was not long after the September 11th attacks.

You are also limited in bringing liquids and jels in your carry-on luggage, like shampoo, conditioner, tooth paste, mouthwash and other liquids. If you want to bring regular-sized containers, then you'd have to check them in with your baggage, otherwise they will force you to throw them away when go through security. It's always a good idea to get those in a travel kit, which are allowed in the carry-on luggage.

[Uconn97]

here is my story. I was in Portugal at the time and was able to get a flight on 9/15 just a few days after. I was told to arrive at Lisbon airport 3 hours ahead of time. The scene at the airport was surreal. Cars were everywhere dropping people off. Chaos of people coming and going, saying goodbyes, crying, trying to figure out where to go. No one was allowed into the terminals unless they had a passport and their ticket. To enter I had to show both and go past 2 armed guards. There were armed guards stationed at every entrance. Once inside you were asked what airline and literally escorted by either a staff member or cop to your line where you waited to check in. I actually expected more screening, but I passed security pretty fast. then it was just waiting to board.

Once on board, there was definite tension in the air. People were nervous and many had been stranded since the attacks. I was a nervous mess until the plane took off, but eventually calmed down. I met an awesome couple (I was traveling alone) from Texas who were the nicest people and I talked to them a bit. The next part is still hard for me. As we approached newark (I had a window seat), I could see smoke rising up into the sky and I still remember that feeling that I knew what I was looking at, but my mind wasn't grasping at it and I was thinking, no, that can't be it. There is no way that its still smoldering 4 days later. But sadly it was. As things came closer and clearer as we made our approach the airplane was completely quiet as people were trying to look out the windows. I could hear a few people crying and I started to well up (at this point I had a friend who I knew was missing down there, but there had been no official confirmation of his death). The woman from texas put her hand on my leg and said "it didn't seem real until now, I just can't believe it". We landed and I remember the captain coming on with his speech about the time, temperature and then he said "to all of you here for a visit, welcome to the U.S. and to all of you who are americans, weclome home". People started to yell and clap and it was a good feeling at that point to finally be home. Fast forward to getting off the plane, the staff at newark kept telling people to keep moving, no one was allowed to stop. When we reached the point where we had to go through customs, there is a large wall of windows that overlooks the skyline to manhattan and I was appauled that people were stopping to snap pictures. I could see the smoke from there and I couldn't imagine why people wanted pictures. Staff were literally knocking cameras down away from the windows telling people no pictures and keep moving. My last memory of this time is driving under the GW bridge, under a huge american flag and being able to see the smoke still rising in the distance. It was that mix of feelings of being glad to be home and on the ground and sadness of all the horrible things that had happened and all the people who died. These images I'll always remember.

[Gue]

I remember the spontaneous applause at touchdown in those early days.

[Chava61]

I flew from NYC/JFK overseas at the beginning of November after 9/11. I remember it was easy to get a ticket at a reasonable price without much advance purchase. Otherwise, security was tight and the plane wasn't that full.