Flight 93 visitor center 'tells incredible story of heroism'

Fourteen years in the making, the center uses photos, video, artifacts and interactive displays to tell the story of Flight 93, the only jetliner among the four commandeered by terrorists that failed to reach its intended target on Sept. 11, 2001.

The center's 10 exhibits are laid out chronologically, with visitors learning how the 33 passengers and seven crew members — at least some of them already aware the nation was under attack — voted to charge the cockpit and then fought to regain control of the plane, whose hijackers are believed to have wanted to crash it into the U.S. Capitol.

Picking up a handset, visitors can listen to recordings of the voice messages that two passengers and a flight attendant left for family members minutes before plane went down.

The center's stark, 40-foot exterior concrete walls are split by a black granite walkway that marks the doomed plane's flight path.

Visitors are led through the exhibits to an outdoor platform that offers a commanding view of the crash site and surrounding hills.