Community Corner

Bin Laden Death Brings Relief to Brother of 9/11 Pilot

Local Brad Burlingame says his late brother Charles, pilot of the plane that crashed into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, would be smiling down after the terrorist leader's death.

Brad Burlingame, the president and CEO of the West Hollywood Marketing and Visitors Bureau, felt "a combination of relief and satisfaction" when he heard the news that Osama bin Laden was dead. "This is the man that killed my brother," he said, sitting at his office desk Monday. "This was a very evil man."

The al-Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden was gunned down by a small team of Navy SEALs in a mansion near the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, President Obama confirmed in a late night television announcement Sunday. It was just four months before the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, which resulted in the death of nearly 3,000 Americans.

Charles, Burlingame's brother, was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77 that was headed to Los Angeles and hijacked by terrorists, crashing into the Pentagon on Sept. 11.

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"He was a super guy, like some classic character, an Annapolis [United States Navy] grad, a husband and a father, and my oldest brother—someone I admired very profoundly," Burlingame said.

The flight data recorder indicates Charles attempted for nearly five minutes to fight off the terrorists who had stormed his cockpit, before the fatal crash, Burlingame said.

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"He was heroic that day and his murderers have been sought after for a long time," he said. "I am very pleased that bin Laden has been eliminated."

The fact that the Navy SEALs—his brother's organization—killed bin Laden holds special meaning for Burlingame, he said. 

"I am very glad that it wasn't a predator or bomb that killed him. This was very surgical," he said. "I know my brother, being a naval officer, was looking down with a big proud smile, knowing the bravery it took to succeed."

While spirited Americans celebrated across the nation, singing the National Anthem and waving American flags late into the night Sunday, Burlingame was less enthusiastic. "I understand the outbreak of feeling demonstrated in Washington D.C. and Times Square," he said, "but celebrating is inappropriate."

He admits, he finds no closure in bin Laden's death. "I think we are fooling ourselves if we think his departure from this Earth is going to end the fanatical behavior of some people," he said. "I will be happier when his collaborators and conspirators, who are still imprisoned by us, are brought to trial."

But Burlingame remains positive. He fills his walls with reminders of 9/11 and his brother. "They are there not for sadness," he said, sitting at his desk, "but to inspire me to do as well as he did, to accept challenges and make everything I get involved in better."

The most important thing to Burlingame is keeping his brother's memory alive, as well as the thousands who have lost their lives in the call of duty. 

"After 9/11, many young men and woman joined the military," he said. "I hope that those people will never be forgotten."


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