Columbia resident was with Bush on 9/11

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard Harding was with the president on 9/11 helping to make some difficult decisions.

Harding now lives in Columbia to be near his son and grandkids, but on Sept. 11, 2001, Harding was working at Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha at the United States Strategic Command as the 9/11 attacks unfolded. President George W. Bush took cover at Offutt later that day.

Harding said he and his colleagues knew it was an attack when they learned of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center’s South Tower.

“There was no doubt in anybody’s mind, you could feel the oxygen leave the room, everybody knew what that meant, that this was an attack,” Harding said.

He said minutes later, he was informed the president was on his way to Omaha.

In the meantime, two commercial passenger planes were down in those early hours of Sept.11, 2001 and there was worry of more to come.

Harding and his colleagues began tracking hijacked aircraft or those they thought might have been hijacked as they waited for the president’s arrival .

“At one point, we had several, many more than four, if memory serves me correct about 10,” Harding said.

He said moments later, they were informed the Pentagon had been struck, a place he and his colleagues had worked at and considered like home.

He said there was no time to think, mourn or call anyone.

“We were worried about our friends and our neighbors, but you keep your head in the game,” Harding said.

As the events progressed, they were told United Flight 93 had turned toward Washington D.C.

That’s when orders were given to take out the plane. Military officers who were not part of the decision were startled when they heard the order.

Harding said it was as though time had slowed down.

“Contemplate the unthinkable, there are innocent souls on United 93, we didn’t know how many, history would show there were 40,” Harding said.

By the time the fighter jets had diverted, United flight 93 had already crashed.

He said Bush took the lead when he arrived.

“You could see President Bush take strong control of the events that happened that day,” Harding said.

Officials wanted the president to stay in Omaha, but Bush kept insisting on the importance of being home for the American people, so he left Omaha.

“He made the decision, maybe the best decision of the day that the American people need to see him return to Washington,” Harding said.

Harding said 911 changed everything, “all their thinking.”

He said the question became, “Can we do that?”

As the war on terrorism progressed, that question would be asked in many contexts, such as detaining terrorists, the use of drones and how the miliary and intelligence agencies engage enemies, including those existing in cyberspace.