Craig Fisher on
"The Missing Week"
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Craig Fisher boarded flight United
Airlines UA929 at 10.30 am on September 11th 2001 bound for Chicago on a
routine business trip. The plane left Heathrow at 11 am, but that was
the fateful day when at 2 pm UK time two planes struck the World Trade
Centre in New York. No
further flights were allowed into American airspace, but because Craig's
flight was more than half way to the US it was necessary to land in
Newfoundland. It had to circle Gander airport to jettison fuel before it
was able to land. The Captain announced that it was landing for security
reasons, but did not explain further.
Forty other aircraft landed on
the small island within a period of 20 minutes and all were parked in
every available space. Clearly the airport could not cope with such an
influx of visitors and everybody had to remain in their planes. The
outside temperature was 34 degrees and the air conditioning was not
functioning in Craig's plane.
After just 4 hours flying, the
total time in the plane soon rose to 21 hours with very little comfort
and only limited supplies of food. |
Craig Fisher from Luton Someries Rotary Club |
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Information was becoming available from
the World Service and the true scale of the horror was emerging. On leaving the
plane there was a full and detailed search of the passengers who were allowed
only to take hand baggage with them. The passengers were ferried by a fleet of
yellow school buses (the drivers had been on strike up to that point) to a
Salvation Army chapel in Gambo which was to be their temporary home for the next
few days.
The local people, who spoke with a strange
accent somewhere between Cockney and West Country, were fantastic and did
everything possible to make them welcome. The local Walmart store gave
them food and drink and essential clothing and the military provided cots
for them to sleep on which were really stretchers comprising an artificial
fabric encased within an aluminium frame.
Tours of the island were arranged which at
that time of year was not unlike Scotland. Entertainment was provided both by
the passengers and the local Fire Department. As usual in these situations a
camaraderie emerged in the face of adversity and groups were soon formed to
handle the tasks and duties necessary to give some semblance of normality.
By now three days had passed and the
airspace was still closed. Television coverage from CNN was arranged in the
Salvation Army building and an Escape Committee was formed. Some of the members
were made Honorary Newfies by downing a large tot of rum and kissing a
cod!
More comfortable accommodation was
arranged for some of the more elderly passengers and the newly weds, and
essential supplies of medication were arranged for those who needed it. It was
rumoured that everybody would be leaving on Saturday or Sunday.
It was 2.30 am on day 6, Sunday 16th
September when a roll call was made, but it was a further 10 hours at Gander
airport before the flight could continue to Chicago. The passengers organised a
spontaneous collection for their hosts and handed over a donation of $2,500 to
the Salvation Army as a gift for their hospitality.
A tremendous and emotional welcome was
organised by United Airlines staff when the flight eventually landed at Chicago
and Craig then chose to board the next flight back to Heathrow. Some passengers
at Heathrow were complaining because their flights had been delayed by 3 hours.
Some of the passengers have kept in touch
and a web site has been created at www.UA929.org
and further funds ($6,000) have been raised for the Salvation Army in Gander in
recognition of the help and support given during that fateful week in history.
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