- The claim that the Flight 93 National Memorial changed the time of its 2026 9/11 observance to accommodate a visit from U.S. President Donald Trump or Vice President JD Vance but neither showed up is unproven.
- Though event pages for past Flight 93 National Memorial ceremonies showed the 2026 event started around an hour and 15 minutes earlier than in previous years, the 2026 program (archived) also was longer than previous years. Moreover, we found no evidence that Trump or Vance were supposed to attend the event at the memorial but failed to show.
- Snopes will update this report if additional information surfaces. We have reached out to the National Park Service regarding the reason for an earlier start time in 2026 and the White House to find out whether Trump and/or Vance were supposed to attend, and are waiting for responses.
After the U.S. commemorated the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a claim (archived) circulated online that the Flight 93 National Memorial changed the time of its 9/11 observance to accommodate a visit from U.S. President Donald Trump or Vice President JD Vance but neither showed up.
United Airlines Flight 93 was one of four planes hijacked on 9/11. It was the only one that did not hit a building, instead crashing in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers attempted to retake control of the plane from the hijackers.
In sharing the claim about Trump and Vance, one X user wrote: “The 9/11 Flight 93 Memorial reportedly changed the time of their ceremony to accommodate a visit from Trump or Vance, but neither of them showed up. Trump traveled to a golf tournament instead.”
The 9/11 Flight 93 Memorial reportedly changed the time of their ceremony to accommodate a visit from Trump or Vance, but neither of them showed up.
Trump traveled to a golf tournament instead. pic.twitter.com/SVhVbLaY6s
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) September 14, 2026
The claim also circulated on Facebook (archived). Snopes readers contacted us about the claim.
The claim is unproven. Though event pages for 9/11 observances at the Flight 93 National Memorial from 2020 to 2026 showed the 2026 event started around an hour and 15 minutes earlier than previous ceremonies, the program (archived) also was longer than in previous years.
We found no evidence that Trump or Vance were supposed to attend the event at the memorial but did not show. Trump attended a commemoration ceremony at the Pentagon with military leaders on Sept. 11, 2026, while Vance attended a commemoration event in New York City at the site of the former Twin Towers. Trump travelled to Dublin, Ireland, in the evening for a two-day visit that included attending the Irish Open at his Doonbeg golf club on Sept. 13.
We contacted the National Park Service, which manages the Flight 93 National Memorial, to ask why the 2026 observance started earlier than in previous years. We also asked the White House press office whether Trump or Vance were supposed to attend the Flight 93 National Memorial observance and await replies to our queries.
In the meantime, because the NPS had not confirmed why the 2026 event had a different start time than previous years, we leave this claim unrated.
Longer 2026 event also memorialized other 9/11 flights
According to event programs for the 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 events, previous 9/11 observances at the Flight 93 National Memorial started at either 9:45 or 9:50 a.m., which could be in order to coincide with the exact time Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, at 10:03 a.m. Sept. 11, 2001. The 2026 event started at 8:30 a.m.
The event programs from 2021 to 2024 generally started with welcome remarks, the Pledge of Allegiance or national anthem, followed by a reading of the names of the 40 passengers and crew on board Flight 93 who died when the plane crashed.
The event programs then listed bells of remembrance, a moment of reflection and conclusion and a wreath-laying. Some events also featured speakers such as former President George W. Bush and then-Vice President Kamala Harris in 2021 and then-first lady Jill Biden in 2022. Trump attended a smaller, live-streamed ceremony during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The 2026 program appeared longer than in previous years, and included remembrances for the three other hijacked flights on 9/11 that struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The 2026 program added musical selections and also included bell tollings and wreath-layings for American Airlines Flight 11, which hit the North Tower on 8:46 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175, which hit the South Tower at 9:03 a.m., and American Airlines Flight 77, which hit the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m.
If the 2026 event intended to honor the other three flights at the times they crashed, it would have needed to start earlier than the previous 9:45 or 9:50 a.m. start times.
For further reading, Snopes has investigated a series of other rumors about where Trump was or what he was doing on or around Sept. 11, 2001.
Sources
9/11 Memorial Timeline. https://timeline.911memorial.org/timeline/10681. Accessed 15 Sept. 2026.
BINKLEY, COLLIN, et al. Trump Commemorates the 25th Anniversary of the 9/11 Attacks at the Pentagon. 11 Sept. 2026, https://apnews.com/article/trump-sept-11-pentagon-2366fe3bb4948c068eaceb392ddbd948.
Event Program – Flight 93 National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service). https://www.nps.gov/flni/planyourvisit/event-program.htm. Accessed 15 Sept. 2026.
Flight 93 to Offer September 11 Ceremony Livestream – Flight 93 National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service). https://www.nps.gov/flni/learn/news/flight-93-to-offer-september-11-ceremony-livestream.htm. Accessed 15 Sept. 2026.
Inside the Octagon – Defence Forces Control Hub for Trump. Aug. 2026. News. www.rte.ie, https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2026/0828/1589591-trump-ireland/.
‘Memorial Ceremony September 11, 2021 9:45 AM’. Flight 93 National Memorial, https://web.archive.org/web/20220802054740/https://www.nps.gov/flni/planyourvisit/event-program.htm.
‘Memorial Ceremony September 11, 2022 at 9:45 Am’. Flight 93 National Memorial, https://web.archive.org/web/20230524100005/https://www.nps.gov/flni/planyourvisit/event-program.htm.
‘Memorial Ceremony September 11, 2024 at 9:50 AM’. Flight 93 National Memorial Pennsylvania, https://web.archive.org/web/20240905163251/https://www.nps.gov/flni/planyourvisit/event-program.htm.
‘Memorial Ceremony September 11, 2025 at 9:45 AM’. Flight 93 National Memorial, https://web.archive.org/web/20250911050636/https://www.nps.gov/flni/planyourvisit/event-program.htm.
Watch Live: Vance, Former Presidents Attend 9/11 Ceremony at Ground Zero. 11 Sept. 2026, https://thehill.com/video-clips/6083822-watch-live-vance-bush-clinton-obama-biden-ground-zero-nyc-911-memorial-25th-anniversary/.
WATCH: Trump Presents Lowry with Irish Open Trophy. Sept. 2026. Sport. www.rte.ie, https://www.rte.ie/sport/golf/2026/0913/1591407-watch-trump-presents-lowry-with-irish-open-trophy/.
