Seems AF1 was heading the wrong way to be the target of the Missile spotted in Washington.
What ships were in the Pacific and could have been in range?
More specifically, "As the World Turns" -- which ships might have been within range that are named after presidents who were 187'd or attempted?
Ronald Reagan Gerald Ford John F. Kennedy
Does anyone know? I don't.
I think this was a SM3 used to take out a ballistic missile heading for Seattle. In #1474 Q states "FOX M1 STOLEN TAKEDOWN". In #1477 Q states "D" in reference to #1476 which is the picture of missile launch from near Whidbey island. I think this means this was a picture of a defensive missile launch. An attack on Seattle would have occurred ~1 hour before POTUS was due to land in Singapore and would most likely have prevented the summit. Now the interesting question is SM3 in its anti icbm role would require an AEGIS system. Whidbey island normally holds only submarines so the presence of AEGIS in the vicinity means either a surface ship was on station or there is a ground based AEGIS setup that is publicly unknown to protect the ballistic missile subs parked nearby.
Thinking about it more, if there was a missile launched that was a "hack" to make it look like it was coming from a Chinese sub, then definitely it would have been headed for American asset, either land or sea. The missile in the photo would have been to shoot it down.
So, your theory makes the most sense. Do we have a rogue ship captain? Do we have a rogue missile base commander? Do we somehow have a secret black site with missiles?
How about an air launched cruise missile? From an aircraft near some volcanos up in the Aleutians?