it is unclear what could have happened had the missile fallen back onto the warship
Really?
The early models of the Soviet equivalent of the Stinger missile had two problems:
1. If they were operated on a sunny day, they would attempt to shoot down the sun.
2. if they went off course, they would lock on the tube that the missile was shot from, which was still very hot. Unfortunately, this was usually still on the shoulder of the person who fired the missile.
Xiden Voter. Obviously.