On the morning of September 11, 2001, Delta Captain Valerie Walker had the day off. Twenty-four hours later, she was one of a handful of pilots authorized to fly again over a shattered America. Her Boeing 767 descended on New York’s River Visual approach, the Statue of Liberty glowing on her left, the smoldering ruins of the Twin Towers on her right. “The smell of death permeated the cockpit,” she writes. “Never again. Not on our watch.”
WHAT READERS DON’T KNOW: In February 2001, seven months before the attacks, 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta and his cell stalked a real Delta female captain through Seattle, attempted to steal her credentials in a violent alley assault, and were driven off only when a plainclothes Federal Air Marshal intervened. Walker renames her protagonist “Kelly Hunter,” but the cockpit procedures, security breaches, and terrorist surveillance techniques are meticulously reconstructed from FAA reports, the 9/11 Commission documents, and her own interviews with the pilots who sat feet from Atta.
WHY THIS BOOK MATTERS NOW:
- 25 years later, most Americans still don’t know that Atta rode jump seats, stalked flight crews, and tested airport security for months before succeeding.
- Walker was one of the first 40 airline pilots secretly trained and deputized by the U.S. government to carry firearms in cockpits after 9/11.
- Her pilot uniforms are displayed in museums alongside the first female aviators in American history.
PRAISE FOR THE FIFTH PLANE (Advanced Reviews):
Val Walker has written an incredible book. From page one the author got me. Could not put it down. Chills stayed with me throughout the night. Well planned and executed. Would I buy the 2nd book? You bet. Congratulations Val
The Fifth Plane is an exciting and emotional novel that combines suspense, strong characters, and an intriguing alternate-history idea. Val Walker does a great job building tension while also showing the human side of crisis and courage. A great choice for readers who enjoy thrillers with meaning.
BOOK INFORMATION:
- Title: THE FIFTH PLANE Vol I & Vol II
- Author: Captain Valerie Walker (DAL Ret.)
- Genre: Historical Thriller / Aviation / 9/11 Fact-Based Fiction
- Publisher: American Book Publisher (2025)
FOR BOOKINGS & INTERVIEW REQUESTS: News producers: Contact the publisher directly. omi@americanbookpublisher.com
Captain Walker is available for:
- 9/11 25th anniversary segments (September 2026)
- Women in aviation features
- Aviation security exposés
- Author signings and airport advertising photo opportunities
Captain Valerie Walker is a living aviation legend. One of the first six female pilots hired by a major U.S. airline (Western/Delta, 1976). First female police aerial patrol helicopter pilot (Smithsonian-displayed). Managing editor of Plane & Pilot. Black belt. And now: the novelist who finally tells the cockpit truth about the months before America fell.
“Of the two wolves fighting inside us, she chooses to feed the good wolf.”
Review copies, author Q&As, and broadcast-quality B-roll available upon request.
Media Contact
Company Name: American Book Publishers
Contact Person: Val Walker
Email: Send Email
Country: United States
Website: https://vwalkerfifthplane.com/
