United Flight 23 was scheduled to leave John F. Kennedy International Airport for Los Angeles at 9 a.m. on September 11, 2001. According to a TMZ documentary, the aircraft may have been intended as a fifth target in the terrorist attacks that morning.
TMZ Investigates 9/11: The Fifth Plane, now available on YouTube, bases its case on accounts from the pilot, flight attendants, an airline dispatcher and others connected with the flight. They argue that the episode received little public attention despite an investigation by federal authorities.
Why did the crew become suspicious?
The documentary says seven people aboard the aircraft attracted the crew’s attention before departure. Their reported behaviour included watching the cockpit and arguing with a flight attendant who wanted to delay takeoff because of an issue involving food.
Those details appeared more troubling once news of the attacks reached the airport and the aircraft was evacuated. The film also presents what it describes as evidence that people hid inside a hatch on the plane, then emerged after the cabin had been cleared and locked.
The documentary suggests they may have returned to retrieve incriminating material. That remains an allegation presented by the filmmakers and interviewees, not a publicly established finding from federal investigators.
