It was a test of the patriot II. The plane was off course a little, and was a brighter target than the drone which was the intended target. Coverup was necessary to avoid bringing down one of the largest defense contactors. Actually, I'm glad for the coverup and I'm glad no one will take my post seriously.
If TWA 800 went down because of terrorists, we would expect them to try again.
If TWA 800 went down because of a military accident, we would expect the military to try to prevent this from happening again.