>my neighbor was from a Naval Intel family and told me as soon as he heard the transponders were turned off, that he knew it was State Actors. Because ordinary terrorists from the desert (whatever) would fail to have the means to turn off transponders.
Osama Bin Laden was from one of the wealthiest construction families in Saudi Arabia. He was by no means some random "terrorist from the desert" and this fact is actually rather downplayed in conventional wisdom.