Agreed, except that it's conceivable that terrorists could put to sea with a crew-launced SAM on all manner of vessels which might normally be found on the Black Sea.

I'm not saying this is what happened, but merely pointing out that the sea offers a greater degree of freedom for those who might contemplate such an act, than terra firma would.

God forbid if terrorists have gotten their hands on crew-launched weapons of this class. Surely no good would come of it.

At the same time, American defense insiders seem to be quietly saying that it appears to be an accident, and I'm inclined to believe those reports at this time.

With any complicated system, as with any weapon, there is always the possibility of accidents, and on top of that, people sometimes do dumb things.

sp