Former flight attendant remembers crew of United Airlines Flight 175 on 9/11

United Flight Airlines 175 is one of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center on 9/11. A former flight attendant in Lee County knew the crew of Flight 175.

We spoke with former flight attendant Corlin Tucker about losing her friends on 9/11.

Tucker won’t ever forget when she watched the second plane hit the south tower. At that moment, she did not know her friends, the flight crew on Flight 175 were on board until the phone rang.

Tucker remembers when her friend Amy Kind broke the news to her.

“She said, ‘Corlin, Amy, our friend was on the second plane,’” Tucker recalled. “And I said, No, she wasn’t because it’s another American flight.’ She said, ‘No. The second flight was United. It was Flight 175.”

Tucker also worked for United at the time of 9/11 and was close to all nine crew members who died on Flight 175.

“I think the worst thing for me is thinking about the minutes of what the crew went through before it hit the building,” Tucker said. “What the passengers went through, looking into the eyes of evil.”

Tucker tries to turn her pain from 9/11 into giving. In 2020, that was serving lunch to the firefighters and staff at Bonita Springs Fire Control & Rescue District.

“It’s been a wonderful path for my healing journey,” Tucker said.

And Tucker is serving alongside her mom, Tish Tucker, who spent 30 years as a flight attendant.

“When you think about it, the flight attendants were the first heroes of 9/11,” Tish said. “They stood in the way of the cockpit.”

Tucker said 9/11 is now her day to remember the firefighters, the police officers, the heroes on those planes and the everyday people who lost their lives.

“I mean on a day-to-day basis, we have people coming to drop off cookies and things, which is always appreciated,” said Chief Greg Dewitt, with Bonita Springs Fire Control & Rescue Control District. “But to hear their story on how they did it or why they did it is just moving.”

It’s also to remember the day, the place and the time her life changed.

“I used to spend this day on the couch just eating whatever I wanted and just staying away from everyone, but now it’s quite the opposite,” Tucker said.