Canada and the United States are passing through a period of serious disagreement. Tariffs, threats, political accusations and economic pressure have damaged a relationship many people once considered almost unbreakable.
Those disputes are real. Canadians should defend their country’s interests and sovereignty, just as Americans expect their government to defend theirs.
But September 11 should be different.
It is a day to step away from the latest argument and remember the human beings who went to work, boarded an aircraft, reported to a firehouse or said goodbye to their families without knowing what the morning would bring. It is also a day to remember what ordinary Canadians did when tens of thousands of frightened travellers suddenly needed somewhere safe to land.
Governments can disagree. Neighbours can still remember together.
The morning that changed the world
On September 11, 2001, 19 terrorists from al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial passenger aircraft in the United States.
- American Airlines Flight 11 was flown into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City.
- United Airlines Flight 175 struck the South Tower.
- American Airlines Flight 77 struck the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
- United Airlines Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew fought back against the hijackers.
Both World Trade Center towers collapsed. Fires, debris and structural damage devastated part of Lower Manhattan. At the Pentagon, another centre of American life and public service was struck. In Pennsylvania, the passengers and crew of Flight 93 prevented the hijackers from reaching another intended target, though everyone aboard was killed.
The attacks killed 2,977 people and injured thousands. The victims came from more than 90 countries and included 24 Canadians. The dead included office workers, airline passengers and crews, military and civilian personnel, firefighters, police officers, paramedics and others who entered danger to help strangers escape.
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum records 441 first responders among those killed that day—the largest loss of emergency responders during a single event in American history. Many survivors, responders, recovery workers and Lower Manhattan residents later developed serious illnesses associated with exposure to toxic dust and debris.
The number 2,977 is necessary for history, but it cannot express 2,977 individual lives. Every victim belonged to a family, a workplace, a neighbourhood and a circle of people who continued living with an empty space.
The skies were full of aircraft with nowhere to go
As the scale of the attack became clear, American authorities closed United States airspace. Aircraft already on the ground were prevented from departing, while hundreds of international flights already crossing the Atlantic and Pacific had to be redirected.
Many did not have enough fuel to turn around. They needed somewhere secure to land—and Canada was directly beneath many of their routes.
Transport Canada activated Operation Yellow Ribbon, an enormous emergency effort involving air-traffic controllers, airport employees, customs and immigration officers, police, the Canadian Armed Forces, municipal officials, health workers and volunteers.
Transport Canada’s official history says Canada managed 224 diverted aircraft carrying more than 33,000 displaced passengers. Other aviation totals vary slightly because agencies counted flights at different stages, but the official Transport Canada figures provide the most consistent national record.
Aircraft landed across the country, including at:
- Gander, Goose Bay, Stephenville and St. John’s
- Halifax and Moncton
- Montreal and Toronto
- Winnipeg and Calgary
- Vancouver
- Other Canadian civilian and military airports
Larger airports could absorb more passengers, but officials also wanted to keep possible threats away from the most populated centres. Every diverted aircraft had to be treated cautiously until authorities established that it was safe.
The response unfolded amid fear that the attacks might not be over. Thousands of strangers were arriving in Canada aboard aircraft that had been heading toward the United States. Security personnel had to inspect planes and screen passengers while humanitarian workers prepared to care for them.
Gander welcomed 38 aircraft
Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, became the best-known Canadian chapter of the story.
The community had a population of roughly 10,000 people, but Gander International Airport possessed long runways and a history as a major transatlantic aviation stop. On September 11, 38 commercial aircraft landed there, carrying approximately 6,600 passengers and crew.
For hours, many travellers remained aboard their aircraft while security, customs and immigration officials worked through the unprecedented arrival. Some passengers still did not fully understand what had happened. Pilots had limited the information shared in flight to avoid panic while the situation remained uncertain.
When passengers were finally cleared to leave, buses carried them to Gander and surrounding communities such as Appleton, Lewisporte, Glenwood, Norris Arm and Gambo.
Schools, churches, community centres, legion halls and other buildings became emergency shelters. Residents provided:
- Beds, cots, blankets and pillows
- Meals, coffee and bottled water
- Clothing and toiletries
- Prescription assistance and medical care
- Telephones so passengers could contact their families
- Transportation
- Showers and laundry
- Child care, toys and places for families to rest
- Care for animals travelling in aircraft cargo holds
Stores, organizations and individuals donated what they had. Teachers, municipal workers, bus drivers, cooks, nurses, clergy, police officers and thousands of volunteers worked with little sleep. Some local families brought complete strangers into their homes.
No one had time to ask how the visitors voted, what religion they followed or whether Canada and the United States agreed on every issue. People needed help, so Canadians helped them.
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum’s account of Gander preserves the story of passengers who arrived confused and frightened, then encountered meals, clean bedding, hot showers and open doors.
Gander was not the only Canadian community that answered
The attention Gander receives is deserved, but Operation Yellow Ribbon was national.
Halifax received more diverted aircraft than any other Canadian airport. Vancouver handled a particularly large number of passengers. Communities near St. John’s, Stephenville, Goose Bay, Moncton and other landing points also found shelter, meals and assistance for unexpected guests.
Air-traffic controllers guided aircraft safely to the ground while Canadian airports parked large jets in spaces never designed for such numbers. Customs, immigration and police personnel processed travellers under extraordinary security pressure. Airport and airline workers remained on duty as the crisis stretched across several days.
Transport Canada described the operation as one of the finest examples of federal departments and agencies working as a single team. Yet its success depended just as much on local people who cooked food, carried bedding, drove buses and sat with frightened strangers.
Bonds that lasted beyond the emergency
When United States airspace reopened and the stranded aircraft began departing, many passengers left Canada with lasting relationships.
Some stayed in contact with the people who sheltered them. Others returned to Newfoundland for anniversaries. Passengers and crew from one flight established a scholarship fund for students in the Gander area. The story later inspired books, documentaries and the Canadian musical Come From Away.
Those later works helped the world learn what happened, but the heart of the story remains simple: ordinary people responded to terror with practical kindness.
Twenty-four Canadians were among the dead
Canada did not experience September 11 only from a distance. Twenty-four Canadians were killed in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania.
Their families faced the same sudden loss, uncertainty and long aftermath as thousands of American and international families. Canada’s federal victims’ ombudsperson has also noted the particular difficulties Canadians can encounter when they are victimized abroad and must navigate foreign and domestic systems for information, recognition and support.
Remembering Canada’s humanitarian response must never overshadow the Canadians who died or the families who continued carrying their grief.
Canada and the United States can be economic competitors. We can oppose tariffs, political pressure and disrespectful statements. Canadians do not have to surrender their interests to prove they are compassionate neighbours.
Likewise, ordinary Americans are not interchangeable with every decision made in Washington. The people killed on September 11 were not a tariff policy, a political party or a negotiating position. They were parents, children, spouses, coworkers and friends.
The border separates two sovereign countries. It should not prevent either country from recognizing the other’s suffering.
On September 11, 2001, Canada did not respond because a trade agreement required it. Canadians responded because aircraft were in danger, passengers were afraid and neighbours needed help.
That history does not cancel today’s disagreements. It reminds us how disagreements should be kept in perspective.
Remembering through service
Canada recognizes September 11 as a National Day of Service. That is an appropriate legacy because the Canadian response was built on action rather than slogans.
Remembrance can include:
- Pausing for the victims and their families
- Learning the names and stories behind the number 2,977
- Thanking first responders and emergency workers
- Supporting local food banks, shelters and volunteer organizations
- Teaching younger Canadians what happened
- Rejecting hatred directed at people because of their faith or background
- Helping a neighbour without first asking what divides you
One lesson of September 11 is that hatred can produce unimaginable destruction. Another is that courage, organization and compassion can appear just as quickly.
We remember
We remember the 2,977 people killed on September 11, including 24 Canadians.
We remember those who ran from danger and those who ran toward it.
We remember the passengers and crew of Flight 93 who resisted.
We remember the survivors, grieving families, first responders and recovery workers who continued paying a physical and emotional price long after the television coverage ended.
And Canadians should remember Operation Yellow Ribbon: the aircraft lined along Canadian runways, the thousands of passengers with nowhere else to go, and the communities that opened schools, halls, kitchens and homes.
Canada and the United States may disagree—sometimes profoundly. We are still neighbours. On September 11, remembrance should be stronger than politics.
Verified sources
- Transport Canada: 11-09-2001—Four Days in September and Operation Yellow Ribbon
- National September 11 Memorial & Museum: 9/11 facts
- National September 11 Memorial & Museum: annual commemoration
- National September 11 Memorial & Museum: Remembering the Generosity of Gander
- Government of Canada: remembering September 11 and the 24 Canadian victims
- Federal Ombudsperson for Victims of Crime: statement on the victims and lasting effects
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