September 11 attacks: What year was 9/11, how many people died, when did the planes hit & documentaries

The anniversary of the 9/11 attacks are upon us, a day that changed America, and arguably the world, forever. The terrible moment in history is etched into the memory of anyone old enough to remember it.

It was 8.46am when the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan. Sixteen minutes later United Airlines Flight 175 hit the World Trade Center’s South Tower.

Minutes later, American Airlines Flight 77 struck the Pentagon while a fourth and final flight, United Airlines Flight 93, headed for the capital, possibly targeting the White House. However, that plan was thwarted by the brave passengers aboard, who, alerted to the previous attacks, attempted to take control of the plane, forcing the hijackers to crash the aircraft in a field near Shanksville just after 10am.

Founder of terroris organisation, al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden masterminded the September 11 attacks. In response, the United States launched their ‘war on terror’ to depose the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and capture al-Qaeda operatives.

In April 2011, President Barack Obama ordered a covert operation to kill or capture bin Laden and on May 1 2011, the White House announced they had successfully carried out an operation, killing him in his Abbottabad compound in Pakistan.