[Lazamataz]

That's one explanation that I'm not buying. I was in the Navy, on a Destroyer. When a bird is launched, you can hear it throughout the ship. They make quite a roar when the candle is lit. It is very short, and very fast, but very noticeable. There is no way in the world that the entire ship's compliment is going to be silenced regarding a missile launch. Not plausible.

Thanks for that info. This is probably a terrorist attack that failed. After Flight 700, I'm sure our Coast Guard and Navy went into massive terrorist-prevention mode. The success can be measured in the fact that there has only been one reported incident like this -- this one -- since Flight 700.

[Great Caesars Ghost]

I suspect that there were several successful shoe bumbings before Richard Reid forgot to bring his bic to flic. If Flight 800 wasn't a missile, it still could well have been a shoe bomb... that may have been what caused the spark in the center fuel tank.

Then there is the "Body Cavity Bomb" as used in Russia by the Chechyan women. Wait till they start inspecting for that -- no profiling now! Blondes first.