aaaaah, good point. (I've never used aa.com to buy a ticket.)

I just noticed that the ticket was purchased exactly 14 days before 9/11. And they used a VISA card. So the "last minute ATC cash purchase" red flag wouldn't be raised. And perhaps it's coincidence, but it seems plausible that there was a 14-day advance-purchase one-way fare. Now, whatever the fare was, it was surely not an issue to them, but if there was a 14-day fare, then by buying exactly 14 days out, they appear to be "smart consumers," further reducing suspicion.

According to

http://kevxml.infospace.com/_1_4JP6T...ate=09/14/2001

one of the other hijacker pilots entered flight school in 1997. Imagine knowing that all this was going to happen, two years before Clinton's impeachment acquittal. It makes me think that the entire world is way behind the game at this point. With five years to prepare, I'm sure they've predicted everything that's happened so far -- the congressional millitary authorization, the talk of war... the others involved have had 5 years to plan how to hide. It's amazing.