Embry Riddle professor shares vital lessons from 9/11 experience

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Right now, at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, one professor is teaching important lessons in air traffic control and aviation.

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But the best lesson he said he has taught his students has nothing to do with planes. Instead, it’s about people. It’s something that really hit home for Mike McCormick 23 years ago and more than 1-thousand miles away from Daytona Beach when terrorists attacked our country on 9/11.

As thousands of people ran in a panic in the heart of New York City that day, there’s a good chance many didn’t understand why. Mike McCormick remembers every detail of that day.

“I had a text page at 8:42 in the morning and it read possible hijack, American 11. Flight number 310, southbound,” said McCormick.

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McCormick was one of the first people not on the flight to find out the country was under attack.

“I contacted the New York Approach Control and asked them to patch me into Newark Air Traffic Control and I explained to them, look out the window, look at the Hudson River and look for American 767. They may try to land at your airport. A moment later, he says it hit the north tower,” said McCormick.

From that moment on, he said things only got worse. A second aircraft hit the South Tower and that’s when he made the decision to shut down the airspace. He recalls receiving some pushback from another city but he didn’t back down and eventually, the National Command Center shut down all air operations across the county.

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While McCormick can tell you a lot about his colleagues and how they responded calmly and professionally, there is something else about that day and the days after that stands out even more.

“The resiliency of the people of New York. Every building was covered in American Flags, and they were not going to let the attack destroy New York. So they bounced back and that is amazing,”” said McCormick.

Now more than two decades later, McCormick is dedicated to teaching the next generation of air traffic controllers at Embry Riddle. During those lessons, he likes to remind them what role they really play.

“Air traffic controllers are the first line of defense against an attack like this,” said McCormick.

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