Patrick Flannery has spoken publicly for the first time about encountering Hani Hanjour, a 9/11 hijacker, at his family's restaurant in Arizona around the turn of the century. After photographs of the 19 hijackers were released following the attacks, Flannery recognised Hanjour and realised that he and other members of the hijacking group had been regular customers at the Left Seat Restaurant at Scottsdale Airport whilst obtaining pilot training. The revelation has haunted Flannery for more than 25 years, transforming an ordinary memory into something deeply disturbing.

Hanjour obtained his private pilot's license and Federal Aviation Administration commercial pilot certificate in 1999 whilst based in Arizona, later returning with fellow hijacker Nawaf al-Hazmi for additional training. On 9/11, Hanjour led the hijacking of American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757 that was diverted back towards Washington and deliberately flown into the Pentagon at 9:37am, killing all 64 people on board and 125 inside the building. Flannery's family owned the restaurant from 1987 until February 2000, during which time the hijackers frequented the establishment repeatedly whilst taking flying lessons.