Related commentary:
Old Soundman
Bruce Borgerson
David Weiss

Like a lot of pro audio industry folks, Karen Anderson and Linda Seid of EAW were flying back to the U.S. on September 11, 2001, returning from the PLASA convention in London. As the tragic, horrific events of that day unfolded to the shock of the free world, they were thousands of feet above the Atlantic, anticipating the comfort of home, family and friends they would enjoy within just a few hours.

The pilot abruptly interrupted these cozy thoughts, cryptically announcing that due to air traffic being closed on the eastern coast of the U.S., the plane would instead be diverted to Newfoundland. A bit later, the destination changed to Montreal, and finally, they would be landing at Halifax, Nova Scotia. Thus began an odyssey they’ll forever remember, one mixing profound sense of loss, fear and uncertainty with the kindness of strangers, the kinship of seemingly very different people brought together through fate and circumstance.

“Our pilot sounded very restrained; you could tell he was feeling some stress,” Anderson, EAW’s marketing director, explains. “After we landed, he read an official statement that was sketchy, basically telling us that two planes had collided with the World Trade Center, another at the Pentagon and a fourth plane was missing, but not much more.”

As soon as the plane landed, like many of her fellow passengers, Karen pulled out a cell phone and got busy dialing, calling her husband Jamie (of SIA), at home that day with a horrendous case of poison ivy. He was able to fill in some of the details.

“He told me that the World Trade Centers were gone, and I said, ‘what do you mean gone’?” she notes. “They’re down, destroyed completely, he tried to explain. I heard a lot of gasps from others on the plane getting the information at the same way, and you could feel the tension level rising in the cabin. Passengers without cell phones began asking those of us who did to call folks with land lines who in turn could call loved ones and let them know they were OK.”

The plane had set down just after 1 pm, toward the rear of a very long line of jets parked in lines on the tarmac. The cabin quickly starting heating up to an uncomfortable degree. It had become a waiting game, and fortunately for the passengers on this particular flight, the pilot and crew took all steps possible to help ease the strain. The cabin doors were opened to allow the flow of fresh air, the pilot made himself visible, talking with passengers and answering questions as best as possible.

“The vibe on the plane became more like a pub, for lack of a better description,” Anderson describes. “Folks wandered around and chatted, some just moved up to first class and plopped down, the bar was opened and people helped themselves to whatever they wanted. After about four hours, the smokers had had enough, and the pilot was very cool, letting them set up a smoking lounge in the rear galley.”