It’s a question that still lingers in the back of the mind for anyone who lived through that Tuesday morning, or for students today looking back at the digital archives of the 21st century's most defining moment. The North Tower of the World Trade Center was hit first. Most people remember the second impact more vividly because, by then, the cameras were already rolling. But it all started at 8:46 a.m.
Time feels warped when you look at the timeline. For seventeen minutes, the world lived in a state of confused denial. People thought it was a freak accident. A small plane, maybe? A pilot having a heart attack? Then the second plane appeared on live television, and the "accident" theory evaporated instantly.
The First Strike: 8:46 a.m.
The North Tower, also known as One World Trade Center, was the one with the massive telecommunications antenna on top. It stood as a landmark for pilots and tourists alike. At 8:46:40 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, five hijackers steered American Airlines Flight 11—a Boeing 767 loaded with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel—directly into the northern facade.
It wasn't a glancing blow.
The plane was traveling at roughly 466 miles per hour. It sliced through floors 93 to 99. Because of the way the North Tower was hit, the damage was immediate and absolute for anyone above the impact zone. All three emergency stairwells were severed or blocked by debris and fire. If you were on the 100th floor of the North Tower at 8:47 a.m., there was physically no way out. You were trapped.
The Seventeen-Minute Gap
Why do so many people get confused about which tower was hit first? It’s because the South Tower (Two World Trade Center) was hit at 9:03 a.m. During that seventeen-minute gap, the North Tower was burning alone.
Most of the iconic, high-definition footage we see in documentaries—the orange fireball blooming against a blue sky—is actually the second hit. The first hit was only captured by a few people. Most famously, French filmmakers Jules and Gédéon Naudet were filming a documentary about a rookie firefighter in Lower Manhattan when they heard the roar of engines. They swung the camera up just in time to catch Flight 11 disappearing into the North Tower.
It’s a gritty, shaky, terrifying piece of film. It’s the only clear record of the moment the world changed.
Why the North Tower's Position Mattered
The North Tower was the "senior" building. It opened first in 1970. It housed the Windows on the World restaurant. When it was hit, the vibration was felt all the way down to the bedrock.
Interestingly, while the North Tower was hit first, it was actually the second to collapse. It stood for 102 minutes after impact. The South Tower, hit second, collapsed first after only 56 minutes. This reversal often trips people up when they try to reconstruct the morning in their heads. The South Tower was hit lower down (floors 77 to 85) and at a much higher speed (590 mph), which caused the structural failure to happen faster.
The Mechanics of the Impact
The structural engineers who designed the Twin Towers, including Leslie Robertson, had actually considered the possibility of a plane hit. They used a "tube-frame" design. Think of it like a screen door. The strength was in the outer steel columns.
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When Flight 11 hit the North Tower, it didn't just knock out columns; it stripped the fireproofing off the floor trusses. The jet fuel didn't "melt" the steel—that's a common misconception. Instead, it weakened it. Steel loses about half its strength at 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit. The fires inside the North Tower were estimated to be much hotter. The weight of the floors above the impact zone eventually became too much for the softened steel to hold.
Realities of the North Tower Evacuation
Down below the 93rd floor, a frantic, heroic evacuation was happening. Because the North Tower was hit first, the people inside had no precedent for what was happening. Some stayed at their desks. Others started the long trek down the stairs.
In the South Tower, people actually began to evacuate after seeing the North Tower get hit. But then, an announcement was made over the PA system telling people the building was "secure" and they could return to their offices. Some did. Some didn't. Then, at 9:03, the South Tower was struck.
Key Differences Between the Impacts
- Flight 11 (North): Hit head-on. Aimed squarely at the center of the building. Severed all exits.
- Flight 175 (South): Hit at an angle. This actually left one stairwell (Stairwell A) partially intact for a short period, allowing a handful of people from above the impact zone to escape—a miracle that didn't happen in the North Tower.
How History Remembers It
If you look at the 9/11 Memorial today, you’ll see two reflecting pools where the towers once stood. The North Pool is where the first tower hit used to be. It’s a place of immense weight.
Experts like NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) spent years analyzing why the North Tower stayed up longer despite being hit first. Their reports, which are thousands of pages long, essentially concluded that the North Tower's "hat truss"—a steel structure at the top—helped redistribute the load after the initial impact. It fought to stay standing.
Actionable Insights for Understanding the Event
To truly grasp the timeline and the historical weight of which tower was hit first, consider these steps for further research:
- View the Naudet Footage: To see the first impact as it happened, look for the "9/11" documentary by the Naudet brothers. It provides the only clear context of that first 8:46 a.m. strike.
- Study the NIST NCSTAR 1 Report: If you're interested in the physics, the National Institute of Standards and Technology's final report on the collapses is the definitive, fact-checked resource.
- Visit the Memorial Website: The 9/11 Memorial & Museum digital archives allow you to see the exact layouts of the North Tower's impact zone, showing exactly where Flight 11 entered the building.
- Distinguish the Flights: Remember American Airlines Flight 11 (North/First) and United Airlines Flight 175 (South/Second). This distinction is the bedrock of understanding the ATC (Air Traffic Control) transcripts from that morning.
The North Tower was hit first, and while it was the first to be attacked, it was the last of the two to fall. Understanding this sequence isn't just about trivia; it’s about honoring the specific timelines of the thousands of lives that were shifted in those seventeen minutes between the first and second strikes.