TEXAS — Lt. Col. Brian Birdwell said goodbye to his wife, Mel, and his son, Matt, before reporting to the Pentagon on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. 

“I don’t regret how I said goodbye to them that morning. But if I’d have known I was walking out to my death, I would have put far more rigor into that goodbye than just a quick peck on the cheek,” said Birdwell.

Around 9 a.m., Birdwell’s colleague got a call to put on the television, because something bad was unfolding in New York.

“Flight one 175 will crash into the South Tower that we’ll all watch on on live TV, and that would confirm that this was not a normal day in our nation’s life,” said Birdwell.

At his second floor Pentagon office, the soldier from Texas led a prayer. 

“There’s no thought that we were next after that prayer,” said Birdwell. “We continue to watch and monitor.”

Birdwell then steps out and walks right through the impact point.

At 9:37 a.m. the nerve center of the U.S. military was hit. It would collapse 27 minutes later.

“I’ve been around a lot of loud things in my life, but nothing as loud as as that plane making impact,” said Birdwell. “I mean, I thought bomb, and in the next nanosecond, I am blown across the hallway throughout the corridor, set ablaze.” 

Birdwell was just 15 to 20 yards away from the nose of American Airlines Flight 77. 

“The most immediate life-threatening injury, though, is not just the exterior burns, but it’s the interior, the inhalation injury, the temperature of what I’m breathing,” said Birdwell. “I stepped over that line from the desire to live and the struggle to survive to accepting my death. You know, just screamed out in a very loud voice, ‘Jesus, I’m coming to see you.’”

Birdwell suffered more than 60% total body burns, nearly half were third degree. 

He says the right people were in the right place at the right time to carry him to safety and transport him to the hospital, where he would eventually begin a long, excruciating recovery and reconstruction process. 

“I counted the seconds in ICU begging for death, asking the Lord,” said Birdwell. “Because it wasn’t just my own physical agony, but it was the look on Mel’s face, and particularly the look on Matt’s face when he walked in, and I didn’t want them to see me continuing to suffer.”

“In my humanness, it would have been better to be dead, but the Lord knew better, and here we are, 25 years later,” said Birdwell.

The medical interventions went on for four years. In that time, he was honored with the Purple Heart. After 20 years of service, he retired in 2004 and was awarded the Legion of Merit.

“I mean, I should have been killed by the impact,” said Birdwell. “Should have been killed by the flame. Should have been killed by the smoke.”

In the past 25 years, Birdwell and his wife saw their son graduate college, get married and have kids of his own. Birdwell served in the Texas Senate representing the 22nd District for 16 years.

Last year, President Donald Trump nominated Birdwell to serve as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment. He calls himself the chief logistic advisor. 

“Just what an incredible honor,” said Birdwell. “Only the Lord could write this kind of story.” 

Now, Birdwell is back at the Pentagon, and his office is only about 40 to 50 yards away from where he was at the time of impact on 9/11. 

“My scars are not only my only daily reminder, but sometimes walking through certain places of the building is a daily reminder of the Lord’s grace and what a blessing life is,” said Birdwell.

As he reflected on the events of that day 25 years later, Birdwell says freedom, liberty and life have a special meaning to those who have paid for it. 

“September 11th isn’t just about those those that were killed that day or injured that day, but it’s also about every young man or woman that on September 12th, went to a recruiting station, raised their right hand, said, ‘I’ll support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,’” Birdwell said.