Remembrance Ceremony

Each year on September 11, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) holds a remembrance ceremony in CLT’s terminal lobby.

This year’s special event was much larger than in previous years to mark the 25th anniversary and included an Honor Guard procession and bagpiper, brief remarks from TSA and CLT leaders, and a moment of silence for the nearly 3,000 victims who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks.

Experience it in our latest video:

“As an airport, we remember the profound impact that September 11th had on our aviation community, our airline partners, our employees, our passengers and the millions of people whose lives were forever changed,” said Haley Gentry, CLT Chief Executive Officer. “Here in Charlotte, home to American Airlines' second-largest hub, we remember and extend our deepest sympathies to airline team members, passengers, and crews whose lives were forever changed that day.”

CLT Acting Federal Security Director Jose Bonilla issued a recommitment to the TSA mission:

“Forged on an anvil of cruel necessity and bloodshed in the assembly, TSA was built urgently in a time of war to preserve peace,” said Bonilla. “From all walks of life, we came forward to serve at an agency built on innovation, patriotism, and steady virtue. We are firm in our resolve not to yield to terror.”

The ceremony took place in front of a historic artifact housed in the terminal’s east ticketing lobby, near Checkpoint 3.

The display includes a small piece of a steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center ruins, along with a plaque honoring the lives lost, including first responders.