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9/11 Flight 93 Wreckage to Finally Be Buried in Pennsylvania Memorial Park

The remainder of the wreckage of United Flight 93 – one of the planes hijacked during the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States – will be moved to its final resting place this year before the 17th anniversary of the crash, officials said Friday.
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The remains of the airplane, which have been stored in shipping containers, will be buried in an area of a park at the site of the crash in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania, that will be closed off to everyone except loved ones of the victims, Flight 93 National Memorial Superintendent Stephen Clark said.

The flight, commonly referred to as Flight 93, was bound from Newark, New Jersey, to San Francisco when it was overtaken by terrorists the morning of September 11. Then-Vice President Dick Cheney ordered it shot down while in the Presidential Emergency Operations Center bunker deep under the White House, according to then-White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolton.

Before that could happen, however, the plane crashed in Pennsylvania, leaving no survivors. Passengers on the flight reportedly revolted, attempting to reach the cockpit, and the terrorists on board downed the flight before reaching their target, believed to be either the White House or the US Capitol Building. 

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The "Tower of Voices" memorial for the victims — 40 passengers and crew members — is in its final phase and will feature a 93-foot tall musical instrument with a wind chime for each victim.

Families of Flight 93 President Gordon Felt said that his group asked for a final examination of the wreckage before its interment "in order to determine if there were any human remains or identifiable personal items" among it, according to WJLA.

Over the course of several months following the crash, the National Park Service and FBI painstakingly conducted the search, finding a number of items that will be added to the memorial, including an orange passenger call button.

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"What that symbolizes is the amazing courage of not only the flight attendants but all the individuals on Flight 93 who took that call to action," Clark said.

A full report of items recovered will be issued by the National Park Service later this year, according to Clark.

All 40 victims' remains were identified after the crash through DNA testing, dental records, or fingerprints.

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