TWA 800..................
Oh damn! Did they have that tech back then? Pierre Salenger said it was friendly fire.
800 indeed.
Hub said never happen a bunch of navy guys could keep it quiet. His immediate theory was reflected in Nelson demilles nightfall.
yep, twa 800 is exactly the same case. Of course when they accidentally shoot it down they will totally cover it up.
(tin-hat on /s)
A national defense/national security cover-up is the only logical conclusion after careful analysis of all of the known TWA800 facts, particularly following ‘allegedly’ the 2nd civilian airliner shot down by the US Navy’s AN/SPY system (the first and only official documented case being Iran Air Flight 655).
At the time, the USN was battling to keep their DDG-51 procurement schedule.
https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1994/july/right-ship
It was also an election year. Such a scandal would have sunk slick willie.
An unarmed SM-2MR missile directed by the still-evolving AN/SPY system was the culprit, imho. It would explain why the supposed missile (e.g., MANPADS with IR seeker) didn’t target one of the engines (i.e., SM2’s semi-active radar homing). A national security concern would also explain why there have been no USN sailors having come forward with details countering the official narrative.
(tin-hat off)
That stated, I can’t dismiss the ‘Iran-revenge’ theory, considering the degree of cover up at the wreckage hanger, though I remain extremely dubious that a MANPADS was responsible for either the witness statements or purported damage to the airframe. But I do believe that missile components were among the recovered wreckage and spirited away by the government.