Defending the capital: 1st HS veterans recount 9/11 response 25 years later
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A UH-1N of the 1st Helicopter Squadron hovers in front of the west side of the......read moreread more
Courtesy Photo | A UH-1N of the 1st Helicopter Squadron hovers in front of the west side of the Pentagon where Flight 77 struck. (Courtesy) see less
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Defending the capital: 1st HS veterans recount 9/11 response 25 years later
JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. — On the clear morning of Sept. 11, 2001, the daily routine at then-Andrews Air Force Base shattered within minutes. As broadcast screens showed smoke pouring from the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon, emergency sirens sounded across the flight line.
The opening minutes brought intense worry for the 1st Helicopter Squadron. Minutes before American Airlines Flight 77 struck the western side of the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m., a squadron helicopter on a routine training flight had just departed the Pentagon helipad, safely clearing the area moments before impact.
Inside Hangar 1, maintenance crews hurried to tow every available aircraft out to the ramp known locally as "Mussel Beach," generating all 19 UH-1N Huey helicopters for flight.
Retired Lt. Col. James Zegel, then an Air Force captain and pilot serving as the 89th Operations Group executive officer, raced to the flight line to start up aircraft.
"We had a bunch of aircraft running, and the ground was shaking," said Zegel. "I was on the ramp running up an aircraft by myself, and I could see the column of smoke from the Pentagon."
While sitting in the cockpit on the ramp, Zegel heard a stark warning broadcast across the emergency radio frequency: any unauthorized aircraft entering the airspace surrounding Andrews would be shot down.
"I am sitting there thinking, my home in New York is under attack, and my current home where I live and work is under attack," said Zegel. "It was just a crazy, surreal feeling."
Back on the Andrews flight line, a secure call came into mission control from U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Robert Foglesong, calling from the Air Force Operations Center inside the burning Pentagon.
Over the sound of blaring fire alarms, the general asked for immediate air support.
"Son, we are in a really bad way here," said Foglesong. "I do not know what aircraft you can spare, but please send whatever you can as soon as possible."
The squadron responded instantly, launching three helicopters to the Pentagon River Terrace to transport emergency medical supplies, assist first responders and evacuate personnel.
Retired Senior Master Sgt. Jay Ekis, then a newly promoted master sergeant and flight engineer sitting in the left seat of one of the responding Hueys, recalled flying toward the smoke over the Potomac River.
"This is a very congested airspace with multiple airports, and there is always constant talking on the radios," said Ekis. "It was just absolutely silent."
After touching down, the crews worked under emergency conditions, coordinating evacuations while being warned three times of potential unidentified aircraft approaching the capital.
Minutes later, Zegel launched in another helicopter, flying low along the Anacostia River and across the Tidal Basin to deliver medical personnel and supplies directly to first responders near the Pentagon crash site.
As additional taskings arrived, every available crew launched into the empty skies over the National Capital Region. When an urgent request came to extract senior leaders from downtown Washington, a crew sprinted to the final helicopter on the ramp, boarding high-level government officials on the National Mall and flying past the burning Pentagon to deliver them to safety.
According to 89th AW historical records, the installation launched an immediate base-wide relief effort, with the 1st HS flying more than 50 sorties to deliver nearly 650 pounds of vital medical supplies, while base medical personnel deployed four ambulances and 28 medical staff directly to the Pentagon disaster site.
Stationed just miles from the strike at the Pentagon, the response for Andrews’ personnel directly impacted the surrounding communities where they and their families lived.
"You train and make sure that you are ready to go, and then you sit alert like people do at the firehouse," said Ekis. "It was surreal in the sense that there was something actually going on where we had to do our mission."
According to historical records from the 89th AW and 316th Wing History Offices, armed fighter jets enforced a strict airspace quarantine overhead, while Andrews’ security forces maintained a continuous defense posture on the ground until Air Force One safely returned President George W. Bush to the base at 6:34 p.m.
Following the attacks, the squadron transitioned to 72-hour alert shifts for more than a year, sleeping on bunk beds inside squadron offices to maintain constant air defense posture over the capital.
A quarter-century later, that operational heritage is passed down daily across the base. Both Zegel and Ekis now serve as contract simulator instructors at Andrews, having personally trained every 1st HS pilot and flight engineer who has passed through the unit over the last 12 years.
"Every pilot and flight engineer doing the mission today, we get to train them," said Ekis. "It is a fantastic, very talented group of men and women."
For Zegel, passing down those lessons remains an enduring responsibility.
"I always emphasize to them, as long as Washington, D.C. is the capital of the United States, it is always going to be a target," said Zegel. "You have to be as prepared as you can, but you also have to be flexible, adapt, and make decisions."
That mission continues to grow. The legacy of the 1st HS is now reinforced by the recent activation of the 5th Helicopter Squadron, expanding vertical-lift capabilities and emergency response support across the National Capital Region
That line of service was recognized Friday morning as service members, first responders, civic leaders, and local residents gathered outside the base theater for a 25th anniversary remembrance ceremony. Following personal reflections from Zegel and Ekis, the ceremony concluded with the traditional ringing of the fire bell, the playing of Taps, and a 1st HS flyover.
Twenty-five years after rotors first spun into the smoke over the capital, the promise from the Airmen of Joint Base Andrews to the surrounding community remains steadfast: always alert, deeply connected to our neighbors, and standing watch over the home front.
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