1.24.14b – (LAA) – AA Flight 77 Flight Attendant Wings and APFA Pin Ceremony

AA Flight 77 Flight Attendant Wings and APFA Pin Ceremony

 

Thursday, January 30, 2014
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
CR Smith Museum
American Airlines Flight Academy
Dallas, Ft. Worth
RSVP: [email protected]

Flight Attendants are invited to attend a ceremony next Thursday, January 30, 2014, at the CR Smith Museum. During the ceremony, a pair of Flight Attendant wings and an APFA union pin found among the Flight 77 wreckage will be temporarily placed in the CR Smith Museum. There are a limited number of seats available for this event – therefore, the first 70 Flight Attendants that respond via email to [email protected] requesting attendance will receive an email invitation on Monday, January 27, 2014. Please include your full name, email address and contact phone number. If you need hotel accommodations, the Westin Hotel DFW (972) 929-4500 is offering a discounted rate to those able to attend.

A Brief History
On October 4, 2013, Ms. Joan Cote, Director of the USO in Dover, Delaware, presented to American Airlines CEO Tom Horton, a set of American Airlines Flight Attendant Wings and an APFA Pin recovered from the wreckage of Flight 77, tragically lost at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.

The wings were recovered by the Joint Personal Effects Depot (JPED) a military unit formed with the purpose of processing and returning the personal effects of our fallen military to their families. The wings and pin from Flight 77 do not have any personal markings on them. Because there was no way to identify to whom they belonged, the JPED retained possession of the items at their Headquarters.

In a letter to JPED, AA requested the return of the wings and pin to American Airlines. The request did not receive any traction until mid-summer 2013 when Joan Cote was invited to attend the annual American Airlines Sky Ball event held in October. Joan was determined to bring the wings and pin to present to American Airlines during her visit to Dallas, so she reengaged the senior leadership at the JPED and was successful in obtaining the release for the items; hence the presentation to Tom Horton on 4 October.

AmericanAirlines + US Airways 
“On Our Way”

Leslie Mayo
APFA National Communications Coordinator