Flight 93 cockpit recorder played in Moussaoui trial

April 15, 2006

The Los Angeles Times reports that the transcript of the voice recorder on United Airlines Flight 93 was read during the on-going trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the self-proclaimed Al-Qaeda member being charged with terrorism in connection with the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The transcript is the first recording of the hijacked airplane's voice recorders to be released to the general public. In 2004, when the 9/11 Commission Report was finished, some details of the recording were published, however the full transcript was not included in the publication.

The transcript, which has been viewed by the 9/11 Commission Report, references to people trying to get in the cockpit at 9:58 a.m. EST. The transcript at timestamp 09:58:57 records a voice in Arabic saying, "(They want to get in here. Hold, hold from the inside. Hold from the inside. Hold)." Minutes later, a voice in English is recorded, stating, "In the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die."

The reading of the United Airlines Flight 93 voice recorder transcript during the on-going trial of Zacarias Moussaoui confirms what has already been stated in the findings of the 9/11 Commission — there is nothing to show any passenger ever got into cockpit or fought the terrorists before the plane crashed at 10:03 a.m. EST.

The transcript does not record anyone saying, "Let's roll" as stated in previous media reports, but has one person saying "roll it." The phrase "Let's roll" has become a popular catchphrase, said to be stated by Todd Beamer, in reference to the attempt of passengers of Flight 93 to stop the hijackers. President Bush used the phrase in his 2002 State of the Union Address.