The Flight 93 National Memorial is located just north of Shanksville, Pennsylvania. It's the crash site of United Airlines flight 93. The memorial honors the crew and passengers who fought the terrorists on that fateful day. Thanks to their bravery...they saved hundreds, if not thousands of lives that day. It's a day that most Americans will never forget.
Visiting the memorial is FREE and open to the public from sunrise until sunset. It's open year-round, weather permitting. The visitor's center is open every day except for major holidays.You'll want to park in the FREE parking lot, handicap spaces are available.
The memorial was designed by Paul and Milena Murdoch of Los Angeles, California and their design team. The memorial was titled Crescent of Embrace with the first phase of the permanent memorial completed and dedicated on September 10th, 2011. There was some controversy about the "Crescent" design, so it was officially modified into a circle to address those concerns. You can find information online and at the visitor's center if you wish to learn more about it.
You'll want to start your visit at the Visitor's Center where you can check out the interactive displays, talk to the employees and volunteers and/or use the public restroom. We spent about 20 minutes just in the visitor's center reading all of the information. From time to time they host educational programs at the center too.
The first thing you'll come to is the Wall of Names which contains 40 white marble panels which are positioned on the flight path. These panels list all of the names of the passengers and crew. We took our time walking the path and reading the names as we went along. It's a humbling experience.
In 2017 new construction began to erect the Tower of Voices monument which stands 93 feet tall. The tower contains 40 wind chimes to represent each crew member and passenger who died that day. Made from cement...it was completed in 2018 and can be seen from miles away. It's really impressive when you see it in person. Humbling and a great way to honor those who gave their lives on 9-11.
The above photos show the Crash Site and Debris Field. When I stood there just looking out at the area...I was speechless. Just speechless. It took me several minutes to take it all in. I was overcome with all kinds of different emotions.
Every year on September 11th the park hosts an observance which is open to the public. Throughout the year they host various special events and services. The park is managed by the National Park Service and you'll find rangers on-site that give presentations and will answer visitor's questions. You can find detailed information on the Flight 93 National Memorial by visiting their official website.
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