LONDONDERRY, N.H.— On the day of the 9/11 attacks, President George W. Bush was rushed from an appearance at an elementary school in Sarasota, Fla. to an “undisclosed location.”
That location was Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City, La., which had communications systems to ensure that the President had contact with the proper military commanders in the event of a national emergency.
Stationed at the base that day was Glenn Carlson, a U.S. Air Force B-52 crew member who’d just returned from a Red Flag exercise in advanced aerial combat training—and who suddenly found himself part of the unfolding response to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
Carlson, a resident of Laconia, N.H., spoke about the U.S. military’s response to 9/11 in a presentation on Thursday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Aviation Museum of N.H., 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, N.H.
Carlson retired from the U.S. Air Force as a lieutenant colonel in 2007 after more than 23 years of service. He served as a B-52 electronic warfare officer, instructor, evaluator, flight test, and numerous wing and staff positions.
Carlson’s military career included deployment in support of operations Desert Shield and Enduring Freedom, and for Pacific Deterrence during the War in Iraq. He also served as an instructor, research advisor, and course director at Air Command and Staff College.
But it was the rapidly unfolding events of Sept. 11, 2001 that stand out as a turning point in his service career. Carlson will speak about his perspective from the air surrounding the horrific events of 9/11, and how that day shaped his military career and U.S. air power from that point forward.
After retiring from the service, Carlson went on to work as the Electronic Attack Capability Group Lead at BAE Systems in Nashua, N.H., overseeing a team of over 50 engineers supporting over three dozen programs before moving to Elbit America, where he was the Technical Director for Electronic Warfare until he retired in September 2024.
The Aviation Museum, a non-profit 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization based in the 1937 art deco passenger terminal at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, is dedicated to preserving the Granite State’s rich aviation past, and also inspiring today’s students to become the aviation and aerospace pioneers of tomorrow.
The Aviation Museum of N.H. was named “’Best Historic or Cultural Attraction for an All-Ages Family Crowd” in southern New Hampshire in the 2025 HippoPress Reader’s Poll.
The Aviation Museum is located at 27 Navigator Road, off Harvey Road, in Londonderry, N.H. For more information, visit www.aviationmuseumofnh.org or call (603) 669-4877 or email ldearborn@nhahs.org. Follow the Aviation Museum on social media at www.facebook.com/nhahs.
A video recording of Carlson’s presentation will be posted at a future date. Below are photos from Carlson’s presentation at the Aviation Museum:
