Cause of death Stabbed Name Charles Burlingame | Spouse(s) Sheri Burlingame Occupation Pilot | |
Full Name Charles Frank Burlingame III Born September 12, 1949 ( 1949-09-12 ) St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S Died September 11, 2001, Arlington County, Arlington, Virginia, United States People also search for Debra Burlingame, Arthur W. Radford, Edward A. Craig | ||
9/11 Special Part 1 | Interview with Debra Burlingame
A Tribute to Flight 77
Charles Frank "Chic" Burlingame III (September 12, 1949 – September 11, 2001) was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, the aircraft that was crashed by terrorists into The Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks.
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Biography
Burlingame was born September 12, 1949, in St. Paul, Minnesota, to parents Charles F. "Chuck" Burlingame Jr. (1923–1999) and Patricia Ann Burlingame (née Meyer; 1930–2000). He moved frequently as a son of an active duty member of the United States Air Force, spending parts of his childhood in California and England. Burlingame graduated from Anaheim High School, California in 1967. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America where he achieved its highest rank, Eagle Scout.
Charles Burlingame graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the United States Naval Academy in 1971. In the Navy, he flew F-4 Phantom jets in Fighter Squadron 103 (VF-103) aboard the USS Saratoga, rising to the rank of captain. He was an honor graduate of the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) aboard NAS Miramar, California. In 1979, Burlingame left active duty with the Navy and joined American Airlines, though he remained in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Burlingame volunteered to be activated during the Gulf War. Burlingame also spent time working in The Pentagon, while in the Naval Reserve.
He was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal.
Burlingame retired as a Navy Reserve Captain in 1996 and worked at American Airlines. Burlingame was married to an American Airlines flight attendant, Sheri Burlingame. They lived in Oak Hill, Virginia.
Death
Burlingame was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, with First Officer David Charlebois, before it was hijacked and flown into the Pentagon. Unlike the other three flights, there were no reports of anyone being stabbed or a bomb threat and he might not have been murdered by the hijackers but shoved to the back of the plane with the rest of the passengers, according to Barbara Olson, a passenger of the flight, who asked her husband on her mobile: "What do I tell the pilot to do?" suggesting Burlingame was next to her at the back of the aircraft. He would have turned 52 the day after the incident.
Burlingame was buried in the Arlington National Cemetery. He was initially deemed ineligible for burial there due to his status as a reservist deceased at an age younger than 60, but Burlingame was given a waiver and his case triggered reform of Arlington's burial criteria.
At the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, Burlingame is memorialized at the South Pool, on Panel S-69.