Flight 93 designs unveiled
Again, chain-linked fences supported the expressions of a sincere worldwide community inspired by the story of United Airlines Flight 93.
Whereas the temporary memorial off Skyline Road in Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, displays poems, law enforcement patches and license plates left by visitors, these gifts were the intricate, imaginative and sometimes abstract tributes to the 40 passengers and crew from the aircraft.
More than 950 designs hang within cubicles at the Georgian Place Outlet Stores in Somerset as proposals for a national memorial to the victims of a plane hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001, and crashed into an abandoned strip mine field near Shanksville.
While some of the 30-by-40-inch placards suggested hulking structures that might be more tourist-friendly, others sought to create a tranquil, somber locale befitting the rural county's landscape. They ranged from professionally produced computer images to pencil sketches to water-colored renditions.
Competition organizers invited the media to view the designs Friday, while the public may see them starting Wednesday. Photos of every design also will be online at www.flight93memorialproject.org, perhaps as soon as the middle of next week.
Jerry and Karen Bingham, of Wildwood, Fla., lost their son, Mark, when Flight 93 went down. After viewing hundreds of the designs on display yesterday, they said they prefer a memorial that maintains the small-town atmosphere of Shanksville.
"I think it's the feeling you get that all those people were on that plane that you need to get because they were heroes," Jerry Bingham said of the quality he'd like to see reflected in the winning design.
The legend of Flight 93, founded upon phone conversations that family members had with loved ones before the plane crashed, lends angelic attributes to the passengers and crew. A passenger revolt might have spurred the premature fall of the plane before it traveled another 20 minutes of flying time to Washington, D.C.
Most of the designs incorporated the number 40 within some part of their memorial. They showed 40 monoliths, flag poles, ponds, grassy paths, feather-shaped sculptures, spotlights or other conceptual compositions.
Timelines of 9/11 events and sundials also were popular themes. One design purported a 60-foot stainless-steel sundial would cast a shadow upon the intersection of three rings outlined on the ground at the center of the memorial at 10:03 a.m. on every Sept. 11.
Many of the designs implied selflessness through opened hands that were ready to catch anything that might fall. Another hand-themed design recommended sculpting the land to create a palm that would stretch 5,000 feet across. Four fingers would raise above the ridge in the earth.
Runways and aircraft wings also were common in the designs. Another proposal, titled "Bury My Heart with Flight 93," showed 40 limestone monuments leading to an 18-foot-by-30-foot sculpture of a 23-karat gold heart severed in two.
Others evoked a place in heaven for the 33 passengers and seven crew members. At least two designs featured free-standing, 40-step staircases that led toward the sky.
"Some folks have really dug deep for some ingenious designs," said Calvin Wilson, a Herndon, Va., resident whose brother-in-law, LeRoy Homer Jr., died in the plane crash. Homer was a co-pilot on the flight.
Among the dignitaries at the exhibit yesterday was Gov. Ed Rendell, who presented a $250,000 check for the planning of the memorial. In September, he also pledged $10 million from the state for its construction.
"Their heroics are emblazoned on the American psyche and part of our history, and it's very, very important that we get it right," Rendell said.
Organizers exhibited the designs anonymously. A few entrants confirmed by the Tribune-Review declined to identify their designs or comment about the motivation for them.
Submissions came from all 50 states and 26 countries. More than 2,300 entries were registered for the competition, though some potential applicants contacted by the Tribune-Review said they were unable to return a design because the registration packet came too late.
A jury of family members, design professionals and a National Park Service official will judge the designs Jan. 24-26. Between three and five finalists will be chosen for the second stage of the competition on Jan. 27 and announced on Feb. 4.
By Sept. 25, the Flight 93 Federal Advisory Commission must present to Congress and the Secretary of the Interior the recommended design, management plan and boundaries for the national memorial.
