Plane crashes in Pennsylvania

The plane ploughed into the earth, creating a huge crater

A United Airlines 757 jet crashed in Pennsylvania, reportedly killing all 45 people on board.

United Airlines Flight 93 crashed near Johnstown, Pennsylvania, shortly after three other planes were flown into buildings in terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

Flight 93 was carrying 38 passengers, two pilots and five flight attendants, the airline said.

United's pilots union also said that the company's Flight 175, a Boeing 767 carrying 65 people, was one of two planes that crashed into the World Trade Center towers in New York.

Flight 93, flying from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, came down north of the Somerset County airport, a small airport about 80 miles (130km) south-east of Pittsburgh.

"It shook the whole station," said Bruce Grine, owner of Grine's Service Center in Shanksville, about 2.5 miles from the crash.

"Everybody ran outside, and by that time the fire whistle was blowing," he said.

Other crashes

Two American Airlines flights also crashed on Tuesday.

Flight 11 out of Boston en route to Los Angeles, a Boeing 767, was flown into the World Trade Center, killing 81 passengers, nine flight attendants and two pilots.

And Flight 77 out of Dulles Airport in Virginia bound for Los Angeles, a Boeing 757 carrying 58 passengers, four attendants and two pilots, crashed into the Pentagon in Washington DC.

It appears that all 266 on board the four planes, including 233 passengers, 25 flight attendants and 8 pilots, were killed.