對美國的攻擊：2001年9月11日

沒有一個人會忘記西元2001年9月11日這個日子。這是一個晴空萬里、藍天白雲的星期二。然而，就在上午10點左右，明亮的天氣很快的轉變成為一場悲劇。美國航空公司編號11號的飛機，於早上8點從麻州波士頓起飛，前往加州洛杉磯。在8點14分時，聯合航空公司編號175號的飛機，同樣從波士頓起飛，也要前往洛杉磯。但是就在8點45分，也就是飛機起飛45分鐘後，美國航空公司的這架飛機撞上位於紐約市的世界貿易中心 (World Trade Center) 北樓 (North Tower) 。9點03分時，聯合航空的這家飛機則撞上世界貿易中心的南樓 (South Tower) 。10點30分時，這兩棟辦公大樓在遭到撞擊之後完全倒塌。

當人們在電視上看到這些事件時，他們感到相當恐懼與困惑。顯而易見的，美國正遭到攻擊，而飛機也成為劫機犯的攻擊武器。


September 11, 2001, is a day that no one will forget. It began as a crystal clear, blue-sky Tuesday. As mid-morning approached, however, the brightness quickly turned into tragedy. American Airlines Flight 11 left Boston, Massachusetts, at 8 a.m., bound for Los Angeles, California. At 8:14 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175 also left Boston for Los Angeles. At 8:45 a.m., just 45 minutes after taking off, the American jet crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower in New York City. At 9:03 a.m., the United jet crashed into the World Trade Center's South Tower. By 10:30 a.m. both towers had collapsed completely from the damage.

As people watched these events unfold on television, they were frightened and bewildered. It quickly became obvious that the United States was under attack and that the airliners were being used as weapons by hijackers.

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