Archive · 10 Aug 2026
Osama bin Laden's Hand-Picked Hijacker Nearly Dropped From 9/11 Plot
A very dangerous leader named Osama bin Laden asked a man from Saudi Arabia named Khalid al-Mihdhar to help with a terrible plan to hurt America.
At first, the man was going to learn how to fly an airplane, but he had problems and left America to visit his wife and new baby.
The leader of the operation, Mohammed Atta, wanted to take him out of the plan.
The big bosses of the bad group, al-Qaeda, said no, he had to stay.
So he got a different job: helping take over an airplane.
He came back to America and was allowed in even though his passport had problems.
The CIA already thought he might be a bad person, but that information wasn't shared with the people who check passports.
On September 11, 2001, he was on the airplane that crashed into the Pentagon, a big American military building.
Many people were hurt that day, and the story shows how important it is for safety groups to share information.
Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden personally selected Saudi national Khalid al-Mihdhar for a key role in the September 11, 2001, attacks.
Al-Mihdhar was initially chosen to train as a pilot and was among the first hijackers to arrive in the United States, landing in January 2000.
Mohammed Atta, the plot's operational leader, reportedly wanted al-Mihdhar removed, but al-Qaeda's leadership in Afghanistan insisted he remain.
He was reassigned as a 'muscle hijacker' paired with Hani Hanjour aboard American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon.
Despite being suspected by the CIA and not appearing on terrorism watch lists, he re-entered the US on July 4, 2001, before the attacks.
US intelligence had tracked al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi to Malaysia, but information about their return to the US was delayed by more than a year.
- Who
- Khalid al-Mihdhar, the Saudi hijacker hand-picked by Osama bin Laden, along with Mohammed Atta, Nawaf al-Hazmi, Hani Hanjour, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and US intelligence agencies.
- What
- An account of how al-Mihdhar was almost removed from the 9/11 plot but kept his role after al-Qaeda's leadership insisted he remain, later serving as a muscle hijacker on Flight 77.
- When
- From January 2000, when al-Mihdhar arrived in the US, through the September 11, 2001, attacks.
- Where
- The United States (including San Diego), Yemen, Malaysia, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and the Pentagon.
- Why
- Because bin Laden had selected al-Mihdhar for the plot and al-Qaeda's leadership in Afghanistan insisted he remain involved despite Atta's objections.
- Event
- September 11, 2001 terror attacks
- Hijacker
- Khalid al-Mihdhar
- Nationality
- Saudi
- Initial role
- Pilot trainee
- Final role
- Muscle hijacker on American Airlines Flight 77
- Flight 77 target
- Pentagon
- First US arrival
- January 2000
- Re-entry to US
- July 4, 2001 with a six-month visa