Many people remember exactly where they were on September 11th, 2001. For Angela Billings, a U.S. Air Force veteran originally from Bardstown, her memories take her to the Pentagon.
Billings, who now works with some of Kentucky’s top leaders as the director of communications for Senate Republicans, was in the building when a hijacked plane crashed into the west side of the Pentagon at 9:37 in the morning.
“All 6.5 million square feet of the building shook and everyone in it,” Billings said.
“I can recall seeing the windowpane and seeing those retro metal blinds kind of clinking against the glass with the jarring of the impact,” she added. “And I ducked under my desk.”
At the time, Billings was a spokesperson for the U.S. Air Force.
She explained that the day started off normally. She was prepping for an interview that she helped coordinate and was getting ready for the day ahead by checking the latest news cycle. Shortly after, they heard that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. But at the time, no one knew what had happened, and there was still hope that it may have been an accident.