The aircraft was hijacked by four men as part of the al-Qaeda organized attack on the United States on September 11, 2001. Soon after the flight took off, the hijackers entered the cockpit and overpowered the pilots. They took control of the aircraft and flew it toward Washington, D.C. Several passengers and crew members made telephone calls aboard the flight and learned about the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The passengers then decided to attack the hijackers and retake the aircraft.