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After terrorists used commercial jets in suicide attacks against the United States on Sept. 11, pilot Molly Peebles began a mission using planes to bring the nation closer together.

Peebles, 35, of Redmond, Wash., and about 30 other pilots from throughout the country gathered Thursday night at the Flight 93 temporary memorial near Shanksville, Somerset County, to remember the 40 crash victims and show their support for aviation.

Shanksville was the first stop for the 30 "Flight Across America" pilots, all selected to carry their home state's flag. After a night in Somerset, they flew this morning to Frederick, Md., and will gather for a memorial service at the Pentagon in the evening.

On Sunday, pilots representing each state will fly their planes over the Hudson River, followed by a memorial service for those killed in the World Trade Center attack. The state flags will be presented to the people of New York City.

In Stonycreek Township, they sang "God Bless America" as two commercial pilots laid a rose-covered wreath among the other numerous flowers, signs and photos visitors have left at the site.

"We've begun a pilgrimage of healing for each of us," Peebles said tearfully as she spoke to the crowd. "We as pilots do this in the spirit and the magic and the joy of taking flight. It takes us some place to help us see a bigger vision where there are no boundaries or borders.

"There's a message here, and the message is that those who rest here would want us to carry on. We are one, we are strong, and we are united."

Peebles and her co-pilot, Charles Oppermann, of Seattle, began their journey, the "Spirit of America" on Aug. 11. They departed in their Cessna 182 from Everett, Wash. Along the way to Somerset County, they've stopped in towns and cities to speak to school children and other groups about the terrorist attacks and their love of flight.

For 26 days, they've been flying and speaking. But last evening's visit to the Somerset County crash site was more emotional and overwhelming.

"This is the first time the horror of 9-11 came home to me," Oppermann said after a few minutes of silent reflection while sitting in the grass.

Flying is about control, he said, and he could sense the feelings of the United and American Airlines pilots that day when they lost control.

Part of Peebles' vision of healing through flight includes an Internet map showing the flight paths for any pilot who registers on the Web site, www.flightacrossamerica.com. A map shows the paths, which connect and link the country together, she said.

"For a week after Sept. 11, I was just paralyzed," said Pebbles, who worked in social services and counseling before obtaining her pilot's license. "My first idea was for a flight around the world for peace and unity. That seemed a little too large, and so I decided I should just start with the nation."

Wilkes-Barre resident David Pekala, a private pilot and scientist at Aventis-Pasteur, carries the flag of Pennsylvania. Pekala is part of a team preparing for any bioterrorism attacks. His company developed 85 million doses of the smallpox vaccine, which was donated to the federal government.

Flying his 1969 Piper with the "Flight Across America" pilots just felt like the "right thing to do, he said.

"It really takes my breath away," Pekala said. "Not only did 40 people die, he said, but they died while saving numerous other lives."

Nancy Aldrich and Donna Miller flew their Cessna from Colorado. Miller, of Golden, organized the Somerset County service. It began with just her and Aldrich, who wanted to place the wreath from the Airline Pilots Association of Denver in honor of Flight 93 pilot Jason Dahl, who was from Colorado.

But when the other pilots heard of their plans, they wanted to share in the experience.

"It's such a wonderful thing to use aviation as a positive tool," said Miller, an American Airlines pilot furloughed after the attacks. "We're really just honored to be a part of this."

It was the first time Aldrich, who retired in 2000 after 16 years, saw the crash site, and like everyone else, she was overwhelmed with emotions. As a retired United Airlines pilot, however, she had seen the Somerset countryside before.

Aldrich said she had flown numerous times in the plane that crashed. She knew the route of Flight 93 and had seen the area from above the ground before.

"Wow. It could've been me," she said. "But we're out here today to show that aviation isn't the problem. Terrorists are the problem."

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