At 9:12, Renee May called her mother, Nancy May, in Las Vegas. May said that there were six hijackers, and that the passengers had been moved to the rear of the plane. She also asked her mother to contact American Airlines, and inform them of the situation. The call, which lasted for 2 minutes, 38 seconds, was then disconnected. May's parents then contacted American Airlines.[1][2]
At some point between 9:16 and 9:26, Barbara Olson called her husband, Ted Olson, the solicitor general of the United States. Ted Olson was at his desk in the Justice Department, when an aide rushed in to tell him that Barbara was on the phone.[3]
Barbara reported that the flight had been hijacked, and the hijackers had knives and box cutters. She further indicated that the hijackers were not aware of her phone call, and that they had put all the passengers in the back of the plane. About a minute into the conversation, the call was cut off. Solicitor General Olson tried unsuccessfully to reach Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Shortly after the first call, Barbara Olson reached her husband again. She reported that the pilot had announced that the flight had been hijacked. Barbara mentioned that all the passengers and the pilot and cabin crew members had been herded into the back of the plane.[3] She asked her husband what she should tell the captain to do. Ted Olson asked for her location and she replied that the aircraft was then flying over houses. Another passenger told her they were traveling northeast. The Solicitor General then informed his wife of the two previous hijackings and crashes. She did not display signs of panic and did not indicate any awareness of an impending crash. At that point, the second call was cut off.