Los Angeles International Airport in the context of "South Bay (Los Angeles County)"

An airport terminal is a main building at an airport where passengers transfer between ground transportation and the facilities that allow them to board and disembark from an aircraft.

The buildings that provide access to the airplanes (via gates) are typically called concourses. However, the terms "terminal" and "concourse" are sometimes used interchangeably, depending on the configuration of the airport. Smaller airports have one terminal while larger airports have several terminals and/or concourses. At small airports, a single terminal building typically serves all of the functions of a terminal and a concourse. Larger airports might have either one terminal that is connected to multiple concourses or multiple almost independent unit terminals.

American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center complex in New York City, killing everyone aboard the flight and resulting in the deaths of more than one thousand people in the top 18 stories of the skyscraper in addition to causing the demise of numerous others below the trapped floors. The crash of Flight 11 stands as the deadliest of the four suicide attacks executed that morning in terms of both plane and ground fatalities, the single deadliest act of terrorism in human history and the deadliest plane crash of all time. The aircraft involved, a Boeing 767-200ER with 92 passengers and crew, was flying American Airlines' daily scheduled morning transcontinental service from Boston Logan International Airport in Massachusetts to Los Angeles International Airport in California.

The airplane left the runway at 07:59. Less than fifteen minutes after takeoff, the hijackers injured two flight attendants, murdered one passenger, and breached the cockpit while forcing the passengers and crew to the rear of the aircraft. The assailants attacked both pilots, allowing lead hijacker Mohamed Atta to take over the controls. Air traffic controllers suspected that the flight was in distress because the crew became non-responsive. They realized that the plane had been hijacked when Atta's announcement to the hostages was accidentally transmitted to air traffic control instead of through the aircraft's PA system. Also, two flight attendants were able to contact American Airlines and pass along information relevant to the situation, including casualties suffered by the crew and passengers.

United Airlines Flight 175 was an American domestic passenger flight from Logan International Airport in Boston to Los Angeles International Airport in California that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The aircraft involved, a Boeing 767-200 carrying 51 passengers and 9 crew members (excluding the 5 hijackers), was deliberately crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone aboard and causing the deaths of more than 600 people in the South Tower's upper levels in addition to an unknown number of civilians and emergency personnel on floors beneath the impact zone. Flight 175 is the second-deadliest plane crash in aviation history, surpassed only by American Airlines Flight 11.

Flight 175 departed from Logan Airport at 08:14. Twenty-eight minutes into the flight, the hijackers injured several crew members, forced their way into the cockpit, and murdered both pilots while moving anyone who remained to the rear of the aircraft. Lead hijacker Marwan al-Shehhi, who had trained as a pilot for the purposes of the attacks, was able to usurp the flight controls once the hijackers killed the captain and first officer. Unlike the team on American Airlines Flight 11, the terrorists aboard Flight 175 did not switch off the plane's transponder when they took over the cockpit. Thus, the aircraft was visible on New York Center's radar, which depicted the deviation from its assigned flight path before controllers took notice four minutes later at 08:51 EDT. Upon realizing, the ATC workers immediately made several unsuccessful attempts to contact the cockpit of the hijacked airliner, which twice nearly collided with other planes as it recklessly flew toward New York City. In the interim, three people were able to get through to their family members and colleagues on the ground, passing on information to do with the hijackers as well as casualties suffered by the flight crew.

American Airlines Flight 77 was a scheduled domestic transcontinental passenger flight from Dulles International Airport in Northern Virginia to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles. The Boeing 757-200 aircraft serving the flight was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, killing all 64 aboard and another 125 in the building.

Flight 77 became airborne at 08:20 ET. Thirty-one minutes after takeoff, the attackers stormed the cockpit and forced the passengers and crew to the rear of the cabin, threatening the hostages but initially sparing all of them. Lead hijacker Hani Hanjour assumed control of the aircraft after having undergone extensive flight training as part of his preparation for the attack. In the meantime, two people aboard discreetly made phone calls to family members and relayed information on the situation without the knowledge of their assailants.

Carson is a city in the South Bay and the Harbor regions of Los Angeles County, California, located 13 miles (21 km) south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles (23 km) away from Los Angeles International Airport. It was incorporated on February 20, 1968. The city is locally known for its plurality of Filipino-Americans and immigrants. As of the 2020 United States census, the city had a population of 95,558.

San Francisco International Airport (IATA: SFO, ICAO: KSFO, FAA LID: SFO) is the primary international airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. Owned and operated by the City and County of San Francisco, the airport has a San Francisco mailing address and ZIP Code, although it is situated in an unincorporated area of neighboring San Mateo County, approximately 12 miles (19 km; 10 nmi) southeast of San Francisco.

SFO is the largest airport in the Bay Area and the second-busiest in the US State of California, following Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). In 2024, it ranked as the 13th-busiest airport in the United States and the 36th-busiest in the world by passenger traffic. It is a hub for United Airlines, acting as the airline's primary transpacific gateway, and as a major maintenance facility. Additionally, SFO functions as a hub for Alaska Airlines.

Hollywood Burbank Airport (IATA: BUR, ICAO: KBUR, FAA LID: BUR) is a public airport three miles (4.8 km) northwest of downtown Burbank, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The airport serves Burbank, Hollywood, and the northern Greater Los Angeles area, which includes Glendale, Pasadena, the San Fernando Valley, and the Santa Clarita Valley. It is closer to many popular attractions, including Griffith Park, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Downtown Los Angeles, than Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), and it is the only airport in the area with a direct rail connection to Downtown Los Angeles, with service from two stations: Burbank Airport–North and Burbank Airport–South. Nonstop flights mostly serve cities in the western United States, though Delta Air Lines has regular routes to Atlanta.

Originally, the entire airport was within the Burbank city limits, but the north end of Runway 15/33 has been extended into the city of Los Angeles. The airport is owned by the Burbank–Glendale–Pasadena Airport Authority and controlled by the governments of those cities. The Airport Authority contracts with TBI Airport Management, Inc., to operate the airport, which has its own police and fire departments, the Burbank–Glendale–Pasadena Airport Authority Police. They also share police helicopters registered N102CG and N103CG both based out of Burbank airport on the north-east end of the airport on taxiway Bravo. Boarding uses air stairs instead of jet bridges. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a medium-hub primary commercial service facility.

A series of Islamist terrorist attacks linked to al-Qaeda were planned to occur on or near January 1, 2000, in the context of millennium celebrations, including bombing plots against four tourist sites in Jordan, the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), USS The Sullivans, and the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814.

In Lebanon, dozens were killed in clashes in the Dinnieh district between radical Islamists with connections to the Jordan plots and the Lebanese Army. The plots in Jordan and against LAX were foiled by law enforcement agencies, while the attempted bombing of The Sullivans only failed because the boat filled with explosives sank before detonating.

Long Beach Airport (IATA: LGB, ICAO: KLGB, FAA LID: LGB) is a public airport 3 mi (4.8 km) northeast of downtown Long Beach, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also called Daugherty Field, named after local aviator Earl Daugherty. The airport was an operating base for JetBlue, but this ended on October 6, 2020, as the carrier moved its operating base to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), amidst the then-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, Southwest Airlines became the airport's largest airline.

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport. Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 1,413,251 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 1,401,903 in 2009 and 1,451,404 in 2010.

An emergency landing is a premature landing made by an aircraft in response to an emergency involving an imminent or ongoing threat to the safety and operation of the aircraft, or involving a sudden need for a passenger or crew on board to terminate the flight (such as a medical emergency). It typically involves a forced diversion to the nearest or most suitable airport or airbase, or an off airport landing or ditching if the flight cannot reach an airfield. Flights under air traffic control will be given priority over all other aircraft operations upon the declaration of the emergency.

Oxnard Airport (IATA: OXR, ICAO: KOXR, FAA LID: OXR) is a county-owned, public airport a mile west of downtown Oxnard, in Ventura County, California. The airport has not had scheduled passenger service since June 8, 2010, when United Express (operated via a code sharing agreement with United Airlines by SkyWest Airlines) ended flights to Los Angeles International Airport. America West Express also served the airport with nonstop flights to Phoenix in the early-2000s via a code sharing agreement with America West Airlines.

Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 15,961 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 12,060 in 2009 and 4,074 in 2010. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 called it a primary commercial service airport based on enplanements in 2008 (over 10,000 per year). By the time of the next NPIAS report, for 2015–2019, Oxnard Airport had been downgraded to a regional general aviation airport with only 19 enplanements.