PRAISE FOR DEBUNKING 9111 MYTHS "Debunking 9111 Myths is a reliable and rational answer to the many fanciful conspiracy theories about 9/11. Despite the fact that the myths are fictitious, many have caught on with those who do not trust their government to tell the truth anymore. Fortunately, the govern­ ment is not sufficiently competent to pull off such conspiracies and too leaky to keep them secret. What happened on 9/11 has been well established by the 9/11 Commission. What did not happen has now been clearly explained by Popular Mechanics." -R 1 cHARD A. cLARKE, former national security advisor, author of Against All Enemies: Inside America's War on Terror "This book is a victory for common sense; 9/11 conspiracy theorists beware: Popular Mechanics has popped your paranoid bubble world, using pointed facts and razor-sharp analysis." -Au s T 1 N BAY, national security columnist (Creators Syndicate), author (with James F. Dunnigan) of From Shield to Storm: High-Tech Weapons, Military Strategyand Coalition Warfare in the Persian Gulf "Even though I study weird beliefs for a living, I never imagined that the 9/11 conspiracy theories that cropped up shortly after that tragic event would ever get cultural traction in America, but here we are with a plethora of conspiracies and no end in sight. What we need is a solid work of straightforward debunking, and now we have it in Debunking 9111 Myths. The Popular Mechanics article upon which the book is based was one of the finest works of investigative journalism and skep­ tical analysis that I have ever encountered, and the book-length treat­ ment of this codswallop will stop the conspiracy theorists in their fantasy-prone tracks. A brilliant exemplar of critical thinking." -M 1 c H AE L sHER MER, publisher, Skeptic magazine; monthly columnist for Scientific American; author of Why People Believe Weird Things "A small but vocal and opinionated segment of the population of ques­ tionable technical qualifications and obscure personal motivations is obsessed with, and actively disseminates, harebrained explanations for the "true causes" of the terrorist attack of 9/11. Popular Mechanics does an invaluable and laudable service by providing a meticulous analysis and documentation of the unfortunate events that took place five years ago. This book demonstrates convincingly the complete lack of substance of the allegations on the involvement of the U.S. govern­ ment in this affair. A must-read for all those still in doubt!" -EDUARDO KAUSEL, professor of civil and environmental engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology "Based on exhaustive research, Debunking 9111 Myths is a testament to American competence and honesty. The description of the mythmakers who spin fantasies on the Internet makes for compelling reading." -B 1 N G wEsT, former assistant secretary of defense, author of No True Glory: A Frontline Account of the Battle for Fallujah "All too often the scientific community is prone to ignore the nonsen­ sical claims of the conspiracy theorists as not being worthy of a reply. However. something important is lost in taking such an idealistic posi­ tion. The public, who may not be acquainted with many of the more detailed facts surrounding the events of 9/11, may not be in a position to immediately see the fallacy in what is put forward by conspiracy the­ orists as evidence. on Web sites and on the radio. By addressing the more popular conspiracy theories, and pointing out their many serious flaws and shortcomings. Debunking 9111 Myths serves the public through this defense of common sense." -CHRISTOPHER J. EARLS, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, Cornell University "David Dunbar and Brad Reagan shine the cold light of reason on con­ spiracy theories that have been festering since the awful day of September 11. It's a necessary antidote to toxic propaganda." -GLENN REYNOLDS, professor of law, University of Tennessee, lnstapundit.com blogger, and author of An Army of Davids: How Markets and Technology Empower Ordinary People to Beat Big Media, Big Government, and Other Goliaths WHY CONSPIRACY THEORIES CAN'T STAND UP TO THE FACTS FOREWORDBY S ENAT O R JOHN McCAIN EDITED BY DAVID DUNBAR & BRAD REAGAN AN IN-DEPTH INVESTIGATION BY PopularMechanics HEARST BOOKS A Division of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. NEW YORK Copyright © 2006 by Hearst Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, POPULAR MECHANICS: James B. Meigs EDITORS: David Dunbar and Brad Reagan REPORTERS/WRITERS: Arianne Cohen and Christian DeBenedetti COVER DESIGN: Peter Herbert and Agustin Chung INTERIOR DESIGN: Celia Fuller PHOTOGRAPHY EDITORS: Allyson Torrisi and Sarah Shatz PROJECT EDITOR: Catharine Wells RESEARCHERS: Davin Coburn and '!Yghe Trimble PRODUCTION: North Market Street Graphics Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 Published by Hearst Books A Division of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016 Popular Mechanics and Hearst Books are trademarks of Hearst Communications, Inc. www. popularmechanics.com For information about custom editions, special sales, premium and cor­ porate purchases, please contact Sterling Special Sales Department at 800-805-5489 or [email protected]. Distributed in Canada by Sterling Publishing c;o Canadian Manda Group, 165 Dufferin Street Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6K 3H6 Distributed in Australia by Capricorn Link (Australia) Pty. Ltd. P.O. Box 704, Windsor, NSW 2756 Australia Distributed in the United Kingdom by GMC Distribution Services Castle Place, 166 High Street, Lewes, East Sussex, England BN7 1XU Printed in USA Sterling ISBN 13: 978-1-58816-635-7 ISBN 10: 1-58816-635-X CONTENTS A C K N 0 W L E D G M E N T S I ix F 0 R E W 0 R D by Senator John McCain xi INTRODUCTION I xvii 1 THE PLANES I 1 The Hijackers' Flying Skills I 3 Where's the Pod'? I 8 Flight 175's Windows I 12 No Stand-Down Order I 14 Military Intercepts I 22 2 THE WORLD TRADE CENTER 27 The Empire State Building Accident I 29 Widespread Damage I 32 Melted Steel I 37 Puffs of Dust I 43 Seismic Spikes I 50 WTC 7: Fire and Debris Damage I 53 "Pull It" I 56 3 THE PENTAGON I 59 Flight 77 Debris I 62 Big Plane, Small Holes I 66 Intact Pentagon Windows I 71 4 F Ll G H T 9 3 I 75 F-16 Pilot I 77 The White Jet I 81 Cell-Phone Calls I 83 The Wreckage I 86 Indian Lake I 89 AFTERWORD The Conspiracy Industry, by James B. Meigs, Editor-In-Chief, Popular Mechanics I 91 Appendix A: Experts Consulted I 109 Appendix B: World Trade Center Report I 113 Appendix C: Pentagon Building Report I 135 Notes 154 Index I 165 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In late 2004, when Popular Mechanics decided to examine 9/11 conspiracy theories, the magazine's editors brought in a team of writers and reporters to tackle what became an intense, complex project. Their work, published in the March 2005 issue as "9/11: Debunking the Myths," provided the foundation for this book. Thanks to the members of the orig­ inal reporting team-Benjamin Chertoff, Davin Coburn, Michael Connery, David Enders, Kevin Haynes, Kristin Roth, Tracy Saelinger, and Erik Sofge-as well as the talent­ ed editors, designers, and photography editors on staff who helped pull it all together. When Popular Mechanics decided to expand the cover story into a book, Arianne Cohen and Christian DeBenedetti came on board to enhance and update the magazine report­ ing and tackle new theories. Without their skillful writing and pinpoint reporting, this book would not have been pos­ sible. ix Under the guidance and supervision of director of pho­ tography Allyson Torrisi, researcher Sarah Shatz dug through thousands of photographs taken on 9/11 and the days afterward to find the right images to complement the reporting for the magazine story. Allyson and Sarah did such a tremendous job that we asked them to team up again to find more material for the book. We are also grateful to other Popular Mechanics staffers who, like Allyson, willingly added to their magazine workload to help us complete the project: design director Michael Lawton, who oversaw the com­ pelling cover design of senior art director Peter Herbert and designer Agustin Chung; research editor Davin Coburn, who scrutinized the text for accuracy (any errors remain our responsibility); researcher 'JYghe Trimble for pulling together the appendixes, and assistant to the editor-in-chief Erin McCarthy, who coordinated advance reviews. We also owe a large debt of gratitude to Hearst Books: vice president and publisher Jacqueline Deval for her early and unflagging support, associate project editor Catharine Wells for her editorial and organizational skills, design direc­ tor Celia Fuller for her elegant layouts, and copy editor Christine Furry for her discerning reading of the manuscript. Above all, we'd like to thank the hundreds of engineers, investigators, scientists, officials, eyewitnesses, and survivors who willingly gave their time to help us clarify the facts. As many of them have learned, taking a public stance in defense of the facts of 9/11 can make one a target of accusations, invective, and even threats from supporters of "alternative" theories. Our sources' commitment to helping answer the questions of 9/11 is commendable. -The Editors X I ACKNOWLEDGMENTS FOREWORD By Senator John McCain No American living today will forget what happened on September 11, 2001. Each of us will remember how the serenity of that bright morning was destroyed by a savage atrocity, an act so hostile we could scarcely imagine any human being capable of it.