A reunion at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport has brought together the former pilot of Air Force One, members of the president’s security detail and the teacher whose classroom became the setting for one of the defining moments of 11 September 2001.
Retired Colonel Mark Tillman, former Air Force One security chief Will Chandler and Emma E. Booker Elementary School teacher Kay Daniels spoke at the gathering, recalling how President George W. Bush’s planned visit to Sarasota changed within minutes after the terrorist attacks began.
Bush had been visiting the school to mark pupils’ reading achievements when he was told that the United States was under attack. The George W. Bush Presidential Library records that he was then taken back to Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, from where Air Force One flew to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. ([georgewbushlibrary.gov](https://www.georgewbushlibrary.gov/bush-family/presidential-places/air-force-one?utm_source=openai))
Daniels said the president’s conduct had left a lasting impression on her and the school community.
“His visit to our school was indeed an honour… Nothing could have prepared me for the tragic news I was told,” she said. “I want to personally thank President Bush for his calm, intentional, thoughtful and careful manner in which he handled himself in front of me, myself, our students and our community.”
Air Force One security team recalls 11 September
Chandler said protecting the president required complete concentration, even as the scale and source of the threat remained unclear.
“That was our job,” he said. “That’s what we were charged to do the day we were hired. We never let our guard down.”
He praised the wider team of security personnel and crew members who worked to move the president safely from the school to the aircraft, adding that failure was never considered an option.
Tillman recalled that the priority was to get the president airborne as quickly as possible, despite having no clear idea what might happen next.
“My concerns were I had been trained, I was going to do everything perfectly,” he said. “We were set to go, we had no idea what the future held for us, but we were literally going to start flying. Get him in the air. Get him going.”
Several military aircraft escorted Air Force One after it left Sarasota. During the flight, Tillman noticed a military pilot making unusual visual signals. A member of the crew then pointed out that Bush was looking from the aircraft window and returning the gesture.
The gathering also included first responders who helped guide the president’s motorcade back to the airport, where the aircraft made its emergency departure.
Speakers said the events of 11 September must continue to be taught to people born after the attacks, ensuring that the decisions made and the lives lost are not forgotten.
