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Text of a statement issued by United Airlines:
United Airlines has now confirmed that two of its aircraft have crashed.
- UA 93, a Boeing 757 aircraft, departed from Newark, N.J. at 8:01 a.m. local time, bound for San Francisco, with 38 passengers on board, two pilots, five flight attendants.
- UA 175, a Boeing 767 aircraft, departed from Boston at 7:58 a.m. local time, bound for Los Angeles, with 56 passengers on board, two pilots and seven flight attendants.
United has confirmed it will dispatch a team to Johnstown, Pa., as soon as possible to assist, in every way possible, with the investigation and to provide assistance to the family members.
''Our thoughts are with the passengers, employees and family members of those involved. Today's events are a tragedy and our prayers are with everyone at this time,'' said James E. Goodwin, United's CEO.
Goodwin said United is working with all the relevant authorities involved in today's events and will provide further information as soon as it is available.
Friends or family members who want more information about UA 93 or UA 175 should contact 1-800-932-8555. United also will post any information it has on its Web site, www.united.com.
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SHANKSVILLE, Pa. - Two United Airlines jetliners crashed Tuesday morning, one in western Pennsylvania and the second at a location the airline did not immediately disclose. A total of 110 people were aboard the two planes, the airline said.
One plane, United Flight 93, crashed north of the Somerset County airport, a small airport about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. The crash followed terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York.
''It shook the whole station,'' said Bruce Grine, owner of Grine's Service Center in Shanksville, about 2 1/2 miles from the crash. ''Everybody ran outside, and by that time the fire whistle was blowing.''
United said that flight, a Boeing 757, left Newark, N.J., at 8:01 a.m., headed for San Francisco with 38 passengers, two pilots and five flight attendants.
A second plane, United Flight 175, a Boeing 767, also crashed, the airline said, but it did not give a location. That plane left Boston at 7:58 a.m., bound for Los Angeles with 56 passengers, two pilots and seven flight attendants, the airline said.
Because of the attacks in New York, the Federal Aviation Administration had ordered all departing flights canceled nationwide, and any planes already in the air were to land a the nearest airport. The Pennsylvania crash came after the order was issued.
According to Somerset County dispatchers, Flight 93 crashed about 10 a.m. about 8 miles east of Jennerstown, WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh reported.
Michael R. Merringer was out on a mountain bike ride with his wife, Amy, about two miles away from the crash site.
''I heard the engine gun two different times and then I heard a loud bang and the windows of the houses all around rattled,'' Merringer said. ''I looked up and I saw the smoke coming up.''
The couple rushed home and drove near the scene.
''Everything was on fire and there was trees knocked down and there was a big hole in the ground,'' he said.
Earlier Tuesday, terrorists crashed two planes into the World Trade Center and the twin 110-story towers collapsed. A plane also hit the Pentagon in Washington.
In Chicago, United CEO James Goodwin said the airline is working with authorities including the FBI. United said it was sending a team to Pennsylvania to assist in the investigation and to provide assistance to family members.a
''Today's events are a tragedy and our prayers are with everyone at this time,'' Goodwin said.
At Boston's Logan Airport, Joseph Lawless, director of public safety for the Massachusetts Port Authority, said a family assistance center had been set up and families were arriving at the airport.
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