| Location | Canada |
|---|---|
| Organised by | Transport Canada |
Operation Yellow Ribbon (French:Opération ruban jaune) was commenced byCanada to handle the diversion of civilian airline flights in response to theSeptember 11 attacks in 2001 in theUnited States. Canada's goal was to ensure that potentially destructive air traffic be removed from United Statesairspace as quickly as possible, and away from potential U.S. targets, and to instead place these aircraft on the ground in Canada, at military and civilian airports primarily in theCanadian provinces ofNova Scotia,Newfoundland, andBritish Columbia.Yukon,New Brunswick,Alberta,Manitoba,Ontario, theNorthwest Territories, andQuebec also took in aircraft so that any malicious or destructive potential threats could be better contained and neutralized. None of the aircraft proved to be a threat, and Canada hosted thousands of passengers who were stranded until U.S. airspace was reopened.
Canada commenced the operation after the U.S.Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), implementingSecurity Control of Air Traffic and Air Navigation Aids (SCATANA),grounded all aircraft across the United States, an unprecedented action. The FAA then worked withTransport Canada to reroute incoming international flights to airports in Canada.[1]
During the operation, departing flights—with the exception of police, military, andhumanitarian flights—were cancelled, marking the first time thatCanadian airspace had been shut down. In total, as a result of Operation Yellow Ribbon, between 225 and 240 aircraft were diverted to 17 different airports across the country.
Immediately after the attacks on theWorld Trade Center (WTC), both Transport Canada andNav Canada, the Canadian air navigation agency, activated their emergency measures.
Transport Canada activated its situation centre (SitCen) inOttawa at 09:21EDT[2] (13:21UTC), 18 minutes after the second plane hit the WTC.
The SitCen is Transport Canada'semergency operations centre (EOC), originally constructed to deal with earthquakes along theBritish Columbia Coast. It had been used several times prior to September 11, 2001, including theJanuary 1998 North American ice storm and afterSwissair Flight 111 crashed off the coast fromPeggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, on September 2, 1998. As personnel staffed the SitCen, key organizations such asNav Canada, theDepartment of National Defence, theRoyal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP),Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS),Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), andCanada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) were also involved in SitCen operations. One of the tasks of the SitCen was to maintain contact with other members of the Canadian aviation community, such as theAir Transport Association of Canada and local airport authorities. Their counterparts in theFAA (United States) and other internationalcivil aviation authorities were also kept apprised.
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Nav Canada set up two command centres, the Strategic Command Centre (SCC) and the Tactical Command Centre (TCC).
The SCC, located at the head office in Ottawa and headed by Andy Vasarins, vice-president of operations, oversaw the entire crisis and ensured that information and resources were effectively shared amongst the TCC and other parties.
The TCC was originally a training institute inCornwall, Ontario, and headed by Kathy Fox, assistant vice-president of air traffic services. Its role in the crisis was to disseminate information amongst airports andcontrol towers. To facilitate this, general managers from across Canada were present. After the immediate crisis passed, the TCC was relocated to the head office and its operations were merged with the SCC.
The operation officially began at 09:45 ET (13:45 UTC), whenBen Sliney,[3] working in his first day in his position as the U.S.Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) National Operations Manager, ordered all U.S. airspace to be shut down as a result of the attacks.
After learning that the FAA had closed down U.S. airspace,David Collenette, the CanadianTransport Minister, gave orders that Canadian airports be open only for outgoing police, military, and humanitarian flights, and incoming U.S. bound international flights.[4] This was the first unplanned closure of Canadian airspace.[5]
About 500 flights were en route to the U.S. at the time of the attacks.[4] Transport Canada instructed Nav Canada to give permission for transoceanic flights that were at least halfway towards their destination (i.e. had already passed thepoint of no return across theAtlantic orPacific Ocean) to land at the nearest Canadian airport,[6][7] depending on their point of origin and remaining fuel.[4] Planes were entering Canadian airspace at a rate of one to two planes per minute.
During the operation, SitCen staff focused on two issues: where to land the aircraft, and how to screen, deplane, and clear tens of thousands of passengers through immigration and customs. CIC and CCRA brought in extra staff from other posts to clear the passengers.[citation needed]
The first airport to receive diverted flights wasCanadian Forces Base (CFB) Goose Bay, which received seven aircraft;[8] fourteen other airports across Canada also received the diverted flights. As the operation progressed, SitCen staff maintained contact with the affected airports, Collenette, and his deputy,Margaret Bloodworth.
The operation was a challenge for airports inAtlantic Canada. Transport Canada asked Nav Canada to instruct flights coming from Europe to avoidMacdonald–Cartier International Airport in Ottawa,Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Toronto, andDorval International Airport in Montreal as a security measure, since they are the busiest airports inCentral Canada. The majority of incoming flights from Europe were received by Atlantic airports, though some diverted flights did land at Dorval and Pearson.[citation needed]
Gander International Airport, which was the first North American airport on the transatlantic route, took in 38wide-body aircraft, mostly heading for U.S. destinations.[citation needed] The number of passengers and crew accommodated at Gander was about 6,600. The population ofGander at the time was fewer than 10,000 people.Jean Chrétien, then-CanadianPrime Minister, stated that in the span of a few hours the population of Gander jumped by more than 50%.[9]
Halifax International Airport handled 40 flights in a similar manner.[10]St. John's International Airport handled 27[11] ,Greater Moncton International Airport,CFB Goose Bay handled 7,[citation needed] andStephenville International Airport handled 13[12]of thetransatlantic flights.
Most flights coming fromAsia and thePacific to destinations on theWest Coast of the United States and points beyond had no choice but to land atVancouver International Airport, as it was the only major Canadian airport on the West Coast capable of handling the large aircraft used for transpacific flights.[13] Thirty-four flights carrying 8,500 passengers landed inVancouver,British Columbia.
There were also several incidents in which the military escorted jets into Canadian airspace. The joint U.S.–CanadianNorth American Aerospace Defense Command usedCanadian Forces Air Command andUnited States Air Force fighter jet aircraft to intercept and escort civilian passenger flights toWhitehorse International Airport inYukon.[14]
One of the intercepted flights wasKorean Air Flight 85, destined forJohn F. Kennedy International Airport with a stopover inAnchorage, Alaska, which was believed to have been hijacked. Concerns about the plane being crashed into Anchorage led several buildings in the city to be evacuated. Several buildings were also evacuated inWhitehorse as a precaution.[15] The flight ended up running low on fuel, and according to a public affairs official at the airport, there was also a communication problem with the air crew.[16] When it landed at the airport, witnesses reported that the RCMP ordered the crew out of the plane at gunpoint.[14] The incident was a misunderstanding caused by a malfunctioningtransponder and translation error. A year after the event, then-Prime MinisterJean Chrétien revealed that he had given permission to the intercepting fighter jets to shoot down the airliner if the fighter pilots believed that the plane carried terrorists.[17]
Global and theNational Post reported that a similar incident occurred at Vancouver International Airport.[14][18] Two U.S.F-15s escorted anAir China Boeing 747 bound fromBeijing toSan Francisco onto the airport's north runway. Officials at the airport reported that it was purely a communication problem.[14][18][19]
Prior to landing, most pilots did not inform passengers of the situation or the attacks in order to avoid fear and panic. On some planes, even pilots were unaware of the terrorist attacks.Global TV quoted one pilot telling reporters: "When we were in the air, we really didn't know what was going on. All we heard was security measures and we were diverted. That was all we knew…"[18]
Only after landing did pilots tell passengers what had happened, sometimes addressing passengers directly in the cabin.The Washington Post quoted a woman whose flight fromFrankfurt toDallas was diverted toPearson, saying that three hours before landing, the pilot announced that the plane was heading through turbulence. She went on to say that "then he said we were experiencing strong headwinds and we had to land in Canada to refuel. When we landed, he said, 'Okay, there's been a terrorist attack.'"[4]
Passengers had to wait for hours to disembark because Transport Canada was on high-security alert. The RCMP deployed extra personnel to airports so that they could perform a security sweep of each aircraft, lined up on closed runways at most airports. They also increased their presence in the airport terminals.[18][20]
At some airports, stranded passengers watched television coverage while others talked to the airport chaplains, as at Pearson.[20][21] Airports had crisis support teams to help them.
TheCBC reported that the operation received thanks from Washington.Norman Mineta, theUnited States Secretary of Transportation, said at aWhite House news briefing that "we owe our Canadian neighbours a debt of gratitude for helping us as we redirected…flights and their passengers to airports in Canada."[20][21] On the tenth anniversary of 9/11, PresidentBarack Obama recalled Canada's help on that day, and expressed his gratitude for Canada's friendship and solidarity.[22]
The actual number of diverted aircraft and passengers varies from each source. Transport Canada said over 33,000 passengers on 224 flights arrived in Canada, whereas Nav Canada gave a total of 239 flights. According toPrime Minister Jean Chrétien, the number of flights was between 225 and 250 and the number of passengers was between 30,000 and 45,000.
| Airport | Airport code | # of planes | # of passengers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax International Airport | YHZ | 47 | 7,300[23] |
| Gander International Airport | YQX | 38 | 6,600 |
| Vancouver International Airport | YVR | 34 | 8,500 |
| St. John's International Airport | YYT | 21 | |
| Winnipeg International Airport | YWG | 15 | |
| Toronto Pearson International Airport | YYZ | 14 | |
| Calgary International Airport | YYC | 13 | |
| Greater Moncton International Airport | YQM | 10 | |
| Montréal–Mirabel International Airport | YMX | 10 | |
| Stephenville International Airport | YJT | 13 | |
| Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay | YYR | 7 | |
| Montréal-Dorval International Airport | YUL | 7 | |
| Edmonton International Airport | YEG | 6 | |
| Hamilton International Airport | YHM | 4 | |
| Whitehorse International Airport | YXY | 2 | |
| Deer Lake Airport | YDF | 1 | |
| Yellowknife Airport | YZF | 1 | |
| Total | 238 | ||
Halifax International Airport received the most flights while Vancouver International Airport received the most passengers.[10]
Transport Canada and airports involved in the operation also reported a dramatic increase in traffic at their websites for updated and current information concerning news releases, FAQs, and diverted flight information. Transport Canada reported that on September 12, 2001, the day after the attacks, there were more than 47,000 visits to their web site alone. Halifax International Airport reported that just in September, there were 2.1 million visits to their web site, and in October, half a million. Both numbers were far above the average at the time of 40,000 to 50,000 visits per month.[10]
After the initial task of diverting the flights was over, thousands of stranded passengers and flight crews had to be housed and fed until the crisis was over. During the diversion of flights, some airports, including Vancouver International, were inundated with hundreds of telephone calls from members of the public and the corporate community offering their support. In Ottawa, SitCen staff were also inundated with calls from airports, air carriers, the media, and the general public. SitCen staff received an estimated 5,000 calls a day.[citation needed]
When asked in aCNN interview if he was able to get food to the passengers,Jean Chrétien, thePrime Minister of Canada, said that he was able to, and that "many of them have been accommodated in hotels and schools and gymnasiums and so on. And the Canadian authorities and provincial authorities are working… [to make their visitors] in those places as comfortable as possible."[citation needed]
Public efforts to help those affected by Operation Yellow Ribbon led to positive remarks on the subject by people such as Chrétien and his wife,Aline; theUnited States Ambassador to Canada,Paul Cellucci; Collenette;Governor GeneralAdrienne Clarkson and her husband,John Ralston Saul; and in the provinces,premiers, andlieutenant governors. Airports involved in the effort received messages of thanks from passengers, airlines, residents who took in the passengers, and staff atU.S. immigration andU.S. customs. Edmonton International Airport also received a child passenger's drawing of the diverted flights on the ground there, published on page 12 of their 2001 annual report.[25] Some airports, including Halifax and Edmonton, also published messages of thanks on their websites and/or annual reports.[25][26] Many stories of the hospitality given to stranded passengers have come out as a result of the operation.
Some airports were awarded for how they handled the crisis. The British Columbia Aviation Council presented its 2001 Airport Management Award to Vancouver International Airport, citing its professional and compassionate handling of the situation, while the Canadian Public Relations Society (Nova Scotia) presented Halifax International an Amethyst Award in the Crisis Communications category to honour the authority's crisis communication response to the situation.
On September 11, 2002, about 2,500 people gathered at Gander International Airport for Canada's memorial service to mark thefirst anniversary of the attacks, over which Chrétien, Collenette, and Cellucci and other provincial and local officials presided.[27] Chrétien addressed them: "9/11 will live long in memory as a day of terror and grief. But thanks to the countless acts of kindness and compassion done for those stranded visitors here in Gander and right across Canada it will live forever in memory as a day of comfort and of healing"[28] and closed his speech by commending Operation Yellow Ribbon, "You did yourselves proud, ladies and gentlemen, and you did Canada proud."[27]
Operation Yellow Ribbon has been the subject of several popularizations.
It was dramatized in the CBC miniseriesDiverted. Gander's part in Operation Yellow Ribbon is examined in the 2018 filmYou Are Here,[29] which won the Canadian Screen Award for best documentary.[30]The efforts of Gander Centre and Gander Air Traffic control during Operation Yellow Ribbon were showcased on aDiscovery Channel documentary entitled9/11: Cleared for Chaos.[31]
It is also the subject of theBroadway musicalCome from Away, written by the Canadian writing team ofIrene Sankoff andDavid Hein. The musical follows the stories of several passengers, Newfoundlanders, and flight crews in the days following 9/11.[32] The show ran on Broadway at theSchoenfeld Theatre from 2017 to October 2, 2022. It received seven nominations in the 201771st Tony Awards, including best musical.[33] It won aTony Award for Best Direction of a Musical.
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