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A quarter-century after the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers were laid low by Al-Qaeda hijackers, Americans across the nation are gathering to honor the memory of the victims who perished in the attacks. The family of Betty Ann Ong, flight attendant on 
American Airlines Flight 11, will never forget that fateful day.
Betty Ong was the first person to alert ground control on September 11 when she called from the plane to report a stabbing in business class and alarming silence from the cockpit. Her 23-minute phone call gave national authorities the first warning that a massive, coordinated act of terrorism was unfolding and helped confirm the perpetrators’ identities with absolute certainty.
A Beacon Of Courage In America’s Darkest Hour
Betty Ong was one of the 11 crew members and 76 passengers who lost their lives when Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower. The US Air Force and Air National Guard scrambled fighter jets in response to the attack, some launching so rapidly that they were unarmed and only planned to ram themselves into one of the hijacked planes if they were able to intercept it.
The ground stop, however, did lead to the discovery of knives on a United Airlines flight while it was still on the ground at JFK International Airport (JFK). Betty Ong’s call was directly responsible for potentially stopping at least a fourth strike, despite the fact that the FBI was unable to apprehend suspected attackers.
ABC 7 news spoke to Harry Ong, who continuously works to keep his sister’s legacy alive through community outreach, civic, and preservation projects. This is one excerpt of the thoughts and feelings he shared while reflecting on the events of 9/11 and its enduring aftermath:
“It’s just a good feeling and to know that we are trying to promote Betty’s legacy continually… Betty, at the end of the recording, she mentioned quite a few times. ‘Are you there?’ And certainly, I can tell you, Betty, that we’re here for you.”
When Betty Ong made her call at 8:19 AM, air traffic controllers were still unclear as to why Flight 11 had veered off course and turned off its transponder signal. She bravely stayed on the line with American’s Operations and reservation center until the very end, providing critical information that kept more travelers out of the sky during the deadliest attack in US history.
Her call gave authorities the ability to react, but the unprecedented nature and scale of the coordinated hijackings prevented any successful interceptions. UA flight 175 impacted the South Tower at 9:03 AM while F-15 Eagles from Otis ANG were still over 70 miles away. The confusion over the hijackers’ targets also prevented fighters from stopping AA Flight 77 before it hit the Pentagon at 9:37 AM.
Betty Ong’s family considers themselves fortunate that at least her thigh bone was found and cremated, a sense of closure that 40% of the victims’ families have still not received, according to ABC 7 News. In honor of her memory, the family has kept her legacy alive through its youth foundation, the San Francisco recreation center, as well as public memorial events.
Never Forget: A Living Legacy Of Inspiration
The San Francisco Chinatown Recreation Center was renamed in her honor, after her family ‘adopted’ it following the tragic events of 9/11. Today, the site that was once her childhood playground is a platform that sponsors children and young people every day. The center helps provide summer camps and free shoe programs for kids in San Francisco as well as other communities across California.
Her family also advocates for flight attendant safety and mental health support through 9/11 survivor groups and other aviation organizations. Because Betty’s airline colleagues always noted her deep love for children and senior citizens, her siblings deliberately tailored all foundation work to uplift those groups, as NBC wrote. The recreation center holds holiday festivals and hosts exhibitions in tribute to first responders as well as other organizations like the Voices Center For Resilience.
The National 9/11 Memorial remembered her on February 5, the day that would have been her 60th birthday, with a white rose on her name where it is inscribed at Ground Zero in New York City. Betty Ann Ong is survived by her mother Oy Yee-gum, her older brother Harry Ong, and her two older sisters, Cathie and Gloria Ong.
