Passengers 'did not crash 9/11 plane'

No-one knows for certain the hijackers' intended destination

Hijackers on the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania during the 11 September 2001 attacks may have flown the aircraft into the ground to crush a passenger uprising, US investigators now believe.

Cockpit tape recordings appear to contradict the popular perception that passengers forced the crash of Flight 93 to avoid the plane being flown into a landmark building in Washington, they say.

The recordings are discussed in the investigators' report on the attacks presented to Congress last month, which says the hijacker piloting the plane was advised "to crash the plane and end the passengers' attempt to retake the plane".

The cockpit tape-recorder indicates that a hijacker advised to crash the plane and end the passengers' attempt to retake the plane Inquiry report

The FBI has done little to publicise the apparent revision of events preceding the crash, commentators say.

"As described by the FBI director [Robert Mueller]," says the 858-page report, "the cockpit tape recorder indicates that a hijacker, minutes before Flight 93 hit the ground, 'advised [hijacker Ziad] Jarrah to crash the plane and end the passengers' attempt to retake the plane'."

The FBI says its analysis does not diminish the heroism of passengers.

"While no-one will ever know exactly what transpired in the final minutes of Flight 93, every shred of evidence indicates this plane crashed because of the heroic actions of the passengers," FBI spokeswoman Susan Whitson said on Thursday.

Thirty-three passengers, seven crew members and four hijackers died in the crash. President George W Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft were among those to single out the actions of the passengers and crew for praise.

'Let's roll'

The hijacker at the controls at the time is assumed to have been Ziad Jarrah - the only one of the hijackers known to have held a pilot's licence.

Cabin recordings have been difficult to analyse because they contain a lot of static, but, coupled with details of final phone calls to family members, investigators have been able to piece together a picture of events aboard the plane.

According to the FBI report, telephone calls described several attempts by passengers and crew to retake the plane.

Family members have said they were told in phone conversations that the plane's food trolley would be used to try to break into the cockpit.

Passengers were then herded to the back of a plane, and on the words "let's roll", rushed forward towards the cockpit.

The sound of smashing glass and crockery on the recordings lends some credence to that theory.