Benedict L. Sliney (born 1945) is an American retired lawyer, air traffic controller, and former

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

(FAA) National Operations Manager. His first day in this position was on September 11, 2001, and he was responsible for ordering a National Ground Stop across

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

airspace in response to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

Actions on September 11, 2001

After two planes crashed into the twin towers of the

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

and another into the Pentagon, Sliney gave the order to land every plane in the air over the US at the time (implementing the SCATANA plan), effectively shutting down US airspace. There were roughly 4,200 aircraft in flight. This was an unprecedented act, which the 9/11 Commission later denoted as an important and decisive moment in that morning's chaos. While Sliney made the decision on his own initiative, he had the advice of an experienced staff of air traffic controllers and traffic managers. Although it was his first day in charge, Sliney had an over-25-year background in air traffic and management in the FAA. He had held various positions as an

air traffic controller Air traffic control specialists, abbreviated ATCS, are personnel responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. Usually stationed in air traffic control centers and control ...

, first-line supervisor at several major facilities, and Operations Manager and Traffic Management Officer at

New York TRACON The New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) is located in Westbury, Long Island. New York TRACON, also known as N90, is a type of Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control facility known as a consolidated TRACON, meaning that ...

. He also held positions as Traffic Management Specialist, National Operations Manager, and Tactical Operations Manager at the Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) and had regional office experience as Manager, Airspace and Procedures Branch, Eastern Region. Sliney later left the FAA to practice law.

Personal life

Sliney is married to Irene Lynch Ahern. , he is retired and lives in

Sandwich, Massachusetts Sandwich is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, and is the oldest town on Cape Cod. The town motto is ''Post tot Naufracia Portus'', "after so many shipwrecks, a haven". The population was 20,259 at the 2020 census. History Cape Cod ...

Portrayals in films and television

Sliney was initially involved in the 2006 film '' United 93'' in an advisory role. He was then cast in a small role as an

. Later, the film's writer and director,

Paul Greengrass Paul Greengrass (born 13 August 1955) is a British film director, film producer, screenwriter and former journalist. He specialises in dramatisations of historic events and is known for his signature use of hand-held cameras. His early film ' ...

, offered him the opportunity to play himself, which he accepted. Sliney also had a small role in Greengrass's 2010 film ''

Green Zone The Green Zone ( ar, المنطقة الخضراء, translit=al-minṭaqah al-ḫaḍrā) is the most common name for the International Zone of Baghdad. It was a area in the Karkh district of central Baghdad, Iraq, that was the governmental ...

''. He also took part in the documentary '' Seconds from Disaster''.

References

External links

* 1940s births 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American male actors Air traffic control in the United States Air traffic controllers American lawyers American male film actors Dowling College alumni Federal Aviation Administration personnel Living people People associated with the September 11 attacks People from Sandwich, Massachusetts St. John's University School of Law alumni {{US-gov-bio-stub