ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

RICHMOND--The American flag that was allegedly flying over the Pentagon during the Sept. 11 terrorist attack is being donated by its buyer to a new Loudoun County elementary school named after two victims on the plane that crashed into the Pentagon.

John A. Andrews II, 44, chairman of the Loudoun School Board, bought the flag Friday night despite a flap over whether it is authentic.

"Whether it is or not, down the road won't be important," Andrews said. "What will be is the symbolism of the display itself."

Orange County resident David Nicholson sold the flag on eBay for $25,000 in a second online auction after a buyer who originally purchased it for more than $370,000 backed out over questions of its authenticity.

Andrews will donate the flag to Newton-Lee Elementary School in Ashburn, which is scheduled to open in the fall. The school was named for Christopher C. Newton of Ashburn and Dong Lee of Leesburg, who were passengers on American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon.

Andrews said he wanted the school to determine how best to display the flag.

Nicholson auctioned the flag online to raise money for treatment for his kidney cancer. An initial eBay auction drew a final bid of $371,300, but the bidder would not honor the sale because of questions about its authenticity.

During the original 10-day auction, the Md.-based construction company that gave Nicholson the flag, Facchina Construction Co., said it did not have a crane at the Pentagon on Sept. 11. The company also said the letter of authenticity provided to Nicholson by one of its supervisors was not authorized.

Nicholson had found the flag in May 2002 tucked away among several boxes of debris from a Pentagon site under construction when the terrorist attack occurred. It had been donated to the auction house he owned.

He rejected offers from around the world to buy the flag, including one of more than $100,000, opting instead to donate it for educational exhibits around the country. The flag was featured on several major news networks.

Nicholson said he decided to sell the flag to defray medical costs when he learned he had an aggressive form of kidney cancer.