Fifth plane shot down.

I heard on TV today that there was briefly thought to be a fifth plane on 9/11...the transponder was off and the plane noncommunicative for some reason, or something. Could there have been a snafu and the plane be shot down by mistake? How would we react...just say "such is war" or would it become a big scandal? Or first one way and then the other, as the years went by?
 
I suspect it would just be one more tragic event to add to everything else. The media became extremely patriotic in a hurry that day. They wouldn't say anything bad about the government or military. Instead, they'd play it down and portray it as a tragic mistake, but place the real blame for it on the hijackers. The victims would be honored just as the victims of all of the other attacks.

I thought this was going to be about the various rumors that there was a fifth hijacking planned that didn't happen because the flight never got off the ground.
 

Cook

Banned
Could there have been a snafu and the plane be shot down by mistake?
No. This would have been a daylight intercept; the F-16 pilot would have flown alongside while he tried to establish voice communications, if he was unable to establish comms he would then manoeuvre in front of the airliner and waggle his wings, this being internationally recognised as ‘follow me’. This is an unambiguous signal for the pilot to follow the intercepting armed aircraft, no commercial pilot would disobey such an instruction, especially if he was having the radio communications difficulties that would necessitate such an intercept taking place.
 
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