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COMPACAF speaks to Team Hickam during Patriots Day formation

  • Published
  • By Staff Report
  • 15th Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR HICKAM, Hawaii --  More than 1,200 Airmen from around Team Hickam stood in formation as Gen. Gary North, Pacific Air Forces commander, honored the Americans lost on Sept. 11, 2001, and the servicemembers sacrifice.

At the end of his speech, a C-17 Globemaster III from the 15th Wing flew overhead as a tribute to America.

General North said:
Good morning and thank you all for being here. Colonel Barrett, thank you for the invitation to speak, it is an honor to be part of this solemn occasion. On September 11th, 2001, the Pentagon, the World Trade Center, and an open field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, suffered the first major attack on the United States since Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941.

In little over one hour, 2,975 innocent men, women, and children, from over 100 nations were killed. It was one of the darkest days our country has ever known. But from that darkness we saw our nation at its best, as Americans came together to show the world true heroism. Whether it was emergency responders running into burning buildings, people lining up to donate blood to the Red Cross, others enlisting in the Armed Forces, or, like many of you here today, service members going overseas to bring the fight to the enemy, America was united.

We all remember where we were that day, what we were doing, and the immense sadness and anger we felt. Some of you here may have been personally touched by these events, whether it was your proximity to the attacks or because you had family or friends who perished. For you the pain was, and still is, enormous. On that day though, all Americans, and many throughout the world, felt tremendous sadness and anger. But from those feelings arose a hardened resolve that has carried us forward.

In the aftermath of the attacks, then-President George W. Bush said, "Americans should not expect one battle, but a lengthy campaign, unlike any other we have ever seen." Nine years later, we continue to hunt down those who attacked us. Although we have made great progress and have had many successes, our work is not done. President Obama has called our fight against violent extremism "an enduring test of our free society, and our leadership in the world," a test that continues today.

After such a long time, it would be easy for our resolve to waver. By choosing to serve our nation in a time of war, with many of you having deployed multiple times, all of you have shown your resolve. But standing here today and remembering those who died helps to maintain that resolve. We must remember that those who died on September 11th were mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters.

Each individual had a unique life story, a story that reminds us why we continue to fight.
Individuals like retired Lieutenant Colonel Robert Hymel, a fellow Airman and former B-52 pilot. He was a veteran of Vietnam and Desert Storm and had survived being shot down over Hanoi. Among his many decorations were the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart. Colonel Hymel was serving our nation as a civilian with the Defense Intelligence Agency when he became one of the 184 people who perished inside the Pentagon on 9/11.

Then there was Christine Hanson, the youngest victim of the attacks. A two-and-a-half year old girl described by her grandfather as "love personified," she was on her way to Disneyland with her parents aboard United Airlines Flight 175 when it was flown into the World Trade Center's south tower. She was just one of the 2,751 who would perish in New York City that day. It was a life ended almost before it began.

Then there are the 40 passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93 who heroically fought back against their hijackers. These were ordinary people who, upon learning of the fates of the other hijacked airplanes, took extraordinary measures to save the hundreds, or even thousands, of Americans that would be targeted by the hijackers.

Ancient Greek historian Thucydides once said, "the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet, notwithstanding, go out to meet it." The 40 Americans onboard United Airlines Flight 93 saw the danger before them and went out to meet it. With passenger Todd Beamer's now famous rallying cry of, "Let's Roll," the brave passengers fought to regain control of the aircraft. Although they failed to take back the plane, their actions likely saved our nation's Capitol Building or White House, and have inspired our nation ever since.

These are just a few of the thousands of stories from September 11th, some heroic but many more tragic. These stories are why we are here today. It is why we continue to fight against those who helped perpetrate this cowardly attack and who continue to plot new attacks against us and our allies.

Right now the Air Force has over 25,000 Airmen deployed to Southwest Asia, serving alongside soldiers, sailors, Airmen, and Marines from 47 nations. Every day, the Air Force, and the rest of our Armed Forces, are showing we have not forgotten what happened on 9/11 and that we remain firm and resolute in our cause. We are continuing to show the world that America is a country that "will define our times, not be defined by them." We owe those who perished on September 11th to carry on in our mission and ensure America is never again attacked like it was on 9/11.

On the one year anniversary of the attacks, former-President Bush best summed up our mission when he said, "There is a line in our time, and in every time, between those who believe all men are created equal, and those who believe that some men and women and children are expendable in the pursuit of power. There is a line in our time, and in every time, between the defenders of human liberty and those who seek to master the minds and souls of others. Our generation has now heard history's call, and we will answer it."

Thank you for having answered the call on September 11th to defend liberty and for continuing to answer the call nine years later. May God bless the fallen, their families, and all who continue to sacrifice for this nation's freedom.