The National Interest: US warnings about 9/11 threat stretch back decades

The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks did not come as a complete surprise to US authorities, who had been warned for decades about the potential use of aircraft in terrorist attacks.

The National Interest made the assessment in an article published ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attacks.

The outlet noted that US authorities had faced the threat of aviation terrorism since the late 1960s. In 1974, General Benjamin Davis, who was responsible for civil aviation security, warned of the risk of a mass aviation disaster.

In the following years, US intelligence agencies repeatedly received information about terrorist plans to use aircraft as weapons. The threat became increasingly apparent after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the uncovering of the “Bojinka” plot and other incidents.

In July 2001, FBI agent Kenneth Williams warned that Osama bin Laden supporters might be sent to US flight schools. On August 6, President George W. Bush received an intelligence briefing that warned of the “possibility of a coordinated effort by Usama bin Laden.”

According to The National Interest, the key problem was the insufficient sharing of intelligence between US agencies. On September 11, 2001, 19 Al-Qaeda militants hijacked four passenger planes, killing around 3,000 people in the attacks.

Following the attacks, the United States significantly overhauled its aviation security system, including the creation of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

By Jeyhun Aghazada