They have families.
If the Deep State wants you to keep quiet, they will make sure to let you know the consequences of not doing so.
I have no idea. Maybe if you say a word to anyone about this you are dishonorably discharged and lose your pension. We will also blame it on you.
Like I said in my post, I was in the navy at the time. I had no immediate family. It's absurd to believe you could threaten hundreds of sailors' families and not one took a stand. There's no way I'd keep my mouth shut even with threats to my nonexistent family. I didn't even have a dog at the time. Even if I wanted to keep my mouth shut, I doubt I'd be able to after a bender at the bar. Never do crime with me; my guilty conscience will spill the beans after the right amount of beer and whiskey.
This whole FBI cover up for the US Navy is absurd. I wonder how many people who believe the navy shot down flight 800 have ever served in the navy. Or specifically on a Ticonderoga class cruiser or Arleigh Burke class destroyer with Aegis and SM-2 missiles.
If that is true then they're doing a terrible job of it, given the number of leaks that happen on an almost daily basis from every branch of government.
....and the whole ship was threatened with jail, loss of pension and worse if they talked. It was also reported that they all were forced to sign non-disclosure of gov secrets docs before leaving the ship. Don’t remember any leak of such docs, but the threats sounded real at the time.
Who was on board that needed to be silenced? I think I remember a dozen high schoolers in a french class died... and Clinton faced reelection in months...
...ymmv