Filmmakers James Hanlon and the Naudet brothers were given permission by New York City Fire Department to film a documentary about a probationary firefighter . Their subject was Antonios Benetatos , who was assigned to the Engine 7/Ladder 1/Battalion 1 Firehouse on Duane Street in Lower Manhattan . They intended to make a film about the " probie 's " first experiences as a firefighter . On the morning of September 11 , the firehouse , under the direction of Battalion Chief Joseph W. Pfeifer , was called out on a reported " odor of gas " at Church and Lispenard streets . Jules Naudet rode with Pfeifer to investigate , while Gédéon stayed behind at the firehouse to film the " probie . " As the Battalion 1 firefighters examined the supposed gas leak , American Airlines Flight 11 flew overhead . Turning his camera to follow the plane , Jules Naudet taped one of only three known recordings of the first plane hitting the North Tower ( Tower 1 ) of the World Trade Center in the 9/11 attacks . The others were a video shot by Pavel Hlava and a sequence of still frames taken by Wolfgang Staehle
American Airlines Flight 11
American Airlines Flight 11
9/11 (2002 film)