1. Shortly after the hijacking, Betty Ong notified the American Airlines ground crew of the hijacking, staying on the radiophone for 23 minutes to relay vital information that led to the closing of airspace by the FAA, a first in United States history.
Betty Ann Ong was born on February 5,1956, in San Francisco.
Betty Ong was of Kaiping descent, a branch of Sze Yup Cantonese, and had two sisters, Cathie and Gloria, and a brother named Harry.
Betty Ong attended George Washington High School, graduating in 1974.
In 1987, Betty Ong was driving south on US Highway 101 in San Francisco when she witnessed a car roll over twice after it was hit by a speeding pickup truck.
At the time of her death, Betty Ong lived in Andover, Massachusetts.
On September 11,2001, Betty Ong assigned herself to Flight 11, so she could return to Los Angeles and go on vacation to Hawaii with her sister.
Betty Ong: We're supposed to go to LA and the cockpit's not answering their phone.
Betty Ong : They want to know who's being stabbed who.
Betty Ong relayed what Ong was telling her to the emergency operator.
In March 2002, Betty Ong's remains were recovered from Ground Zero and identified.
Betty Ong was cremated and her ashes were buried at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.
Betty Ong is memorialized on Gold Mountain, a mural dedicated to Chinese contributions to American history on Romolo Place in North Beach, a street where she used to skateboard and play as a child.
An extensive clip from Betty Ong's call to headquarters was used for the beginning of the 2012 film Zero Dark Thirty.