<The angle on this event which seems most likely to me is that the USN was on maneuvers to prevent terrorist threats against airliners from being carried out, but failed.

It is also reasonable to assume that the Navy can be found at sea, but this is not always the case. There are plenty of landlubbing squids in the world who have never been to sea and spent entire tours at a landlocked base (my father being one of them).

Assuming the Navy to be in the area of the crash for the purpose of defending a commercial aircraft, and to have no fighting birds in the sky at that time, is a real stretch. People see a battle ship or an aircraft carrier, it's only natural to assume something really big is going on -- but this is not necessarily so.

Naval maneuvers are military training episodes, and to quote a colonel of mine, "Training is everything, and everything is training." 9 times out of 10, if you see a military ship in the water and under power, training is being conducted. Keeping his/her people fit and primed is a 24/7 task for every supervisor aboard. A ship at sea is also under orders for the defense of our nation, at all costs, so you could flip a coin here, but, without any say one way or the other from the Military regarding the purpose of the Navy in the area, I would have to go with the idea of everyday training maneuvers.

Locally, we have Navy Region Northeast & the Naval Submarine Base in Groton, CT, and of course Annapolis, MD, and that big ol' Mid-Atlantic Fleet Support Station at Norfolk, VA. A lot o' boats with a lot o' people, and they all need water sometime.

Dan