'Heartbreaking' 9/11 footage shows tragedy from rare angle viewers claim they've 'never seen' before

A quarter of a century on, a piece of 9/11 footage filmed from a helicopter has racked up hundreds of thousands of views online after being rediscovered by users who say they've never seen the attacks from this angle.

The clip, shared on X, shows the aftermath of the first plane striking the North Tower of the World Trade Center, filmed from a helicopter hovering nearby.

Moments later, the same footage captures the second aircraft slamming into the South Tower, live and largely unannounced, while a newscaster can be heard on the audio still processing the first impact.

"This is the first time I see this video clip, and I thought I saw them all in the last 25 years since 9/11," the user who posted the clip wrote.

The footage arrives just days before the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, which killed 2,977 people on September 11, 2001, after four passenger planes were hijacked by al-Qaeda.

Two of those planes were flown into the Twin Towers in New York City, a third hit the Pentagon in Virginia, and a fourth crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after passengers attempted to fight back against the hijackers, in what is widely regarded as the deadliest terrorist attack in modern history.

Why did the newscaster miss the second plane hitting the South Tower?

Part of what has struck viewers about the footage is the audible confusion in the broadcast itself. As the second plane hits, the newscaster can be heard questioning whether something has happened to the South Tower, seemingly unaware in real time that a second aircraft had struck. Commenters below the clip pieced together why: on the original 2001 broadcast, a caller phoned in to alert the newsroom before the visual sank in.

One person recalled the exchange in detail, writing: "I watched this that morning. I didn't see the second plane either. Somebody called in and told them a second plane hit the tower. The newscaster said, 'you're there?' The woman said 'no, I'm home watching on TV! Replay it! Look at the screen to the right!' They did and we saw."

Another user who watched the towers fall in real time described the moment their brain refused to process what it was seeing, writing that they initially mistook the second aircraft for a small plane before it struck the South Tower, adding: "Typing this, I'm back in that moment. Horror. Fear. Abject terror-and rage."

Footage from the attacks continues to circulate online in part because so many people in New York happened to be filming on early digital devices that day, capturing the disaster from angles never broadcast on television at the time.

A commemoration is planned at the Ground Zero memorial site this week to mark the 25th anniversary of the attacks. Vice President JD Vance will attend the Ground Zero commemoration in New York alongside former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

Following claims that Donald Trump won't be attending because of a political rule, the White House issued a statement without naming the claims.

“As a proud New Yorker, President Trump has spoken about his own experiences watching the horrific events of September 11, 2001,” White House deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said.

“On the 25th anniversary of this tragic day, the President will remember those who were killed at the hands of evil terrorists, honor their loved ones, and pay tribute to the brave first responders who put their lives on the line to rescue their fellow Americans.”

An estimated 6,000 to 25,000 people were injured in the attacks, alongside the nearly 3,000 killed, with the anniversary expected to prompt further footage and testimony to resurface online.