(LEX 18) — Many people remember exactly where they were on September 11th, 2001. For Angela Billings, a U.S. Air Force veteran originally from Bardstown, her memories take her to the Pentagon.
Billings, who now works with some of Kentucky's top leaders as the director of communications for Senate Republicans, was in the building when a hijacked plane crashed into the west side of the Pentagon at 9:37 in the morning.
“All 6.5 million square feet of the building shook and everyone in it," Billings said.
“I can recall seeing the windowpane and seeing those retro metal blinds kind of clinking against the glass with the jarring of the impact," she added. "And I ducked under my desk.”
At the time, Billings was a spokesperson for the U.S. Air Force.
She explained that the day started off normally. She was prepping for an interview that she helped coordinate and was getting ready for the day ahead by checking the latest news cycle. Shortly after, they heard that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. But at the time, no one knew what had happened, and there was still hope that it may have been an accident.
“I immediately started thinking through what kind of plane? How many people? Why was it in the Manhattan airspace? All of those things," said Billings.
But a few minutes later, it became clear that something bad was happening. Another plane crashed into the second tower in New York City. Concerns started to spread about what else may be coming.
“Mike, a friend of mine, whose desk was at the front said ‘you know, there are people who say we could be a target here.’ And I really considered it for just a minute," said Billings.
34 minutes later, American Airlines Flight 77, which had been hijacked above southern Ohio, crashed into the Pentagon.
“I was in shock," Billings said. "It’s almost like an out-of-body experience.”
Billings and her coworkers quickly headed for an exit, making sure they did not get trapped in the inner ring of the building.
“I could see this thick black smoke pouring out over the top of the building," she said. "And in a place that was typically really, really loud with traffic just zooming by - it was eerily quiet. Almost like you could hear a pin drop.”
"In that silence, I heard the distinct sound of chopper blades cutting through the air," Billings added. "And I ducked again, and I thought 'this is the second wave.' They're going to get the rest of us on our way out the building.”
With the headquarters for the U.S. Department of Defense being hit, it became clear that the country was being targeted.
“I thought we are - all of America - is under attack," said Billings.
People were scared and did not know if more planes were coming.
In fact, the 9/11 Commission says there was another plane, United Airlines Flight 93, heading for Washington D.C., although it's not 100% clear which building was its intended target. But the passengers on board that flight fought back, and the plane crashed into the ground in Pennsylvania.
“Heart-wrenching to imagine what it would’ve been like on that plane," said Billings. “Thank God that there were heroes on that plane who said we don’t care what policy is, we’re not going to allow this terrorism to continue to take place. We’re going to take control.”
Outside of the Pentagon, the communications team rallied and determined that it would go into crisis operations. Billings said during the days, weeks, and months after 9/11, it was important to get accurate information to the public. The White House took the lead, according to Billings.
“It’s one of [those] rare time that the military didn’t say a lot. If you remember, the White House took control of the narrative," Billings said. "Little Air Force spokesperson [me] didn’t have anything to say.”
But there were a lot of lessons learned about crisis communications. Billings wrote about those lessons and experiences in her book, "Command the Crisis," which has advice on how to navigate chaos.
