Objection: "Hey. Annapolis isn't on the way to D.C...."
This is just poor writing on my part, and I apologize. It's been pointed out to me that yes, the Naval Academy isn't on the way to the beltway. I'm mixing two issues here. The idea, or threat assessment, was that UAL 93 was on course for D.C., which it was at first; there was, according to the FlightExplorer data, a minor course correction shortly before the flight was lost from radar. I spent some time following the line the new course could have made, and one of the places it would overfly was Annapolis. I decided to put a note here, rather than rewrite the sentence. My apologies.
However, I'm skeptical for another reason: The pilot(s) and the chain of command involved in any such shoot down order would be a source of leaks by now. IMO.