Heather Penney reveals planned suicide mission during 9/11 attacks

Heather Penney, a Purdue University alumna and former F-16 pilot, has shared details regarding a planned suicide mission during the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Stationed at Andrews Air Force Base with the 121st Fighter Squadron, Penney and her flight lead, Lt. Col. Marc Sasseville, were prepared to sacrifice their lives to prevent United Airlines Flight 93 from reaching Washington, D.C.

Because there was no time to arm their jets with missiles, the pilots intended to ram their aircraft into the hijacked Boeing 757. The plan involved Sasseville striking the cockpit while Penney targeted the tail. The pilots launched around 10:30 a.m., but they never located the airliner. They later discovered that the passengers on Flight 93 had already fought back against the hijackers and forced the plane to crash in Pennsylvania approximately thirty minutes before the fighter jets took off.

The story remained largely unknown to the public until 2011, when Penney and Sasseville participated in an event commemorating the 10-year anniversary of the attacks.