What Happened in Montana When the FAA Grounded America on 9/11

Every year when September 11 comes around, I find myself thinking about what that morning looked like here in Montana, more than a thousand miles from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Montana was not among the places attacked, but the national emergency reached us immediately. Civilian flights were stopped at airports across the state. Malmstrom Air Force Base was carrying out its nuclear missile mission as the United States military increased its readiness. Hundreds of emergency management officials attending a conference at Big Sky Resort suddenly needed to get back to their home states.

It is especially striking when you look at what Montana’s headlines looked like on September 10, 2001. Nothing about that ordinary Monday suggested the entire country would wake up to a different world the next morning.

FAA Ground Stop Reached Every Montana Airport

At approximately 9:25 a.m. Eastern time, which was 7:25 a.m. in Montana, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered the first nationwide ground stop in American history. The order prevented civilian aircraft from taking off anywhere in the country, regardless of their destination.

At 9:45 a.m. Eastern time, the FAA took an even more extraordinary step and ordered civilian aircraft already in the air to land at the nearest suitable airport as soon as practical.

More than 4,500 aircraft were in the air when the shutdown began. According to the National Archives account of the FAA’s actions on September 11, the nation’s airspace was clear of commercial and private flights by 12:16 p.m. Eastern time. Military and essential emergency flights were among the limited exceptions.

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta later told the 9/11 Commission that it was the first shutdown of civil aviation in United States history. That order included every civilian airport in Montana, from the state’s largest commercial airports to its smallest aviation facilities.

What the Military Alert Meant for Malmstrom

Malmstrom Air Force Base, located near Great Falls, was responsible for a portion of the country’s land-based nuclear deterrent.

The unit, now known as the 341st Missile Wing, was called the 341st Space Wing in 2001. According to the United States Air Force’s official history of the wing, its crews operated, maintained, and secured Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles located throughout central Montana.

Declassified records from September 11 show that military leaders directed the United States to move to DEFCON 3 at approximately 10:46 a.m. Eastern time.

Those records do not describe how the order was carried out at Malmstrom or identify any specific security measures taken at the base. The most accurate conclusion is that Malmstrom continued carrying out its missile mission while the nation’s overall military readiness increased.

Billings Logan Airport Stopped Civilian Flights

Billings Logan International Airport was subject to the same FAA order as every other civilian airport in the country.

The national ground stop prevented civilian departures from leaving Billings. Aircraft already flying were being directed to land at the nearest suitable airport as the FAA worked to clear the country’s airspace.

The historical record published by Billings Logan does not provide a detailed account of individual flights or passengers at the airport that morning. It does state that the terrorist attacks permanently altered airport security.

The airport’s timeline also records that the Transportation Security Administration took over passenger screening in 2002.

Bozeman Airport Became an Emergency Departure Point

The most detailed account of Montana airport activity that day comes from Gallatin Field, now known as Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport.

Brian Sprenger, the airport’s assistant director in 2001, told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that he was getting ready for work when he saw the second plane strike the World Trade Center. Airport employees began securing aircraft as the national emergency unfolded.

The Bozeman area faced an unusual situation because the annual National Emergency Management Association conference was underway at Big Sky Resort.

Hundreds of emergency management officials from across the country were attending, including Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Joe Allbaugh.

In testimony to Congress, Allbaugh confirmed that he was attending the conference in Montana when he learned about the attacks. He returned to Washington to direct FEMA’s response.

Governor Judy Martz declared a state of emergency effective September 11. State records show that emergency funding was used to provide security and support for officials attending the conference at Big Sky, activate National Guard personnel and operate a satellite emergency coordination center at the resort.

Because regular civilian aviation had been grounded, military and federal aircraft were used to transport some of those officials.

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported that two military transport aircraft, a federal propeller aircraft and an Air Force fighter operated through Gallatin Field that day.

“For a brief moment there on Sept. 11, later that day, we were probably one of the busiest airports in the nation,” Sprenger said in the Chronicle’s account of how September 11 changed the Bozeman airport.

The statement was Sprenger’s recollection rather than a national airport traffic ranking, but it captures how unusual that afternoon was. While civilian aviation across the country had stopped, Gallatin Field was being used to help move emergency officials back to the places they were needed.

Missoula Airport Faced the Same FAA Restrictions

Missoula International Airport was also covered by the nationwide FAA orders.

The initial ground stop prevented civilian aircraft from departing. Aircraft already in the air were instructed to land at the nearest suitable airport. Later that morning, the FAA formally suspended operations throughout the National Airspace System.

Missoula faced the same unprecedented restrictions as Billings, Bozeman, and every other civilian airport in the country.

How 9/11 Permanently Changed Montana Air Travel

The shutdown continued after September 11. The FAA allowed limited operations to begin again in the days that followed, but commercial flying did not immediately return to normal.

The official history of Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport records that the airport was shut down for three days. Even when commercial service resumed, many Americans were unwilling to fly. Airports also began implementing stricter security procedures.

Congress passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act in November 2001, creating the Transportation Security Administration. The law moved passenger screening into federal control and required all checked baggage to be screened.

Knives and other blades previously permitted under certain restrictions were banned from carry-on bags. Additional security requirements continued to be introduced in the years that followed.

Those changes are still part of the way we travel, which is why even new TSA procedures affecting Montana passengers tend to get our attention.

Montana was far from the places attacked on September 11, but it was not separate from what happened. The FAA order stopped civilian aviation across the state. Malmstrom continued its missile mission as national military readiness increased. In Bozeman, military and federal aircraft helped emergency officials leave a conference suddenly overtaken by a real national crisis.

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For a brief bit of time, Montana’s civilian skies were nearly empty. That silence was one small part of a day that changed American aviation forever.