ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
President Trump marked the 17th anniversary of the September 11 attacks in Shanksville, Pa. He delivered solemn remarks celebrating the bravery of the passengers and crew members who lost their lives on Flight 93. NPR's Ayesha Rascoe reports.
AYESHA RASCOE, BYLINE: During his speech, President Trump talked about the 40 - the 40 men and women who joined together on Flight 93 to fight back against their hijackers, bringing down the plane and stopping an attack meant for the U.S. Capitol.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Seventeen years ago, 40 incredible men and women showed the whole world that no force on Earth will ever conquer the American spirit.
RASCOE: Trump told stories about the phone calls that were made by people on that flight to loved ones on the ground, calls where they learned about the two planes that had already flown into the Twin Towers in New York.
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TRUMP: The passengers and crew members came together, took a vote, and they decided to act. At that moment, they took their fate and America's fate back into their own hands.
RASCOE: By rushing the cockpit, Trump said those passengers and crew members saved American lives. The Flight 93 National Memorial is located in the field where that plane went down.
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TRUMP: This field is now a monument to American defiance. This memorial is now a message to the world. America will never, ever submit to tyranny.
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RASCOE: Earlier this week, the National Park Service and the families of Flight 93 dedicated the final element of this memorial site. It is called the Tower of Voices - a 93-foot-tall structure that will hold 40 large wind chimes, one for each person killed.
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TRUMP: Each time we hear those chimes playing in the wind, we will remember the 40. We will remember their faces, their voices, their stories, their courage and their love.
RASCOE: About a quarter of Americans are too young to remember September 11, 2001, firsthand, but at the Flight 93 service, the message to the country was clear. We must never forget. Ayesha Rascoe, NPR News, Washington. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
