Did Reagan really rush back to DC after Korean plane shoot down in '83?

For Fox News, the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 in Ukraine evoked memories of another disaster, the shooting down of Korean Air Flight 007 by the Soviet air force in 1983. The commercial flight with 269 people aboard had strayed into Soviet airspace on its way to Seoul. A Soviet SU-15 Interceptor opened fire, crippling the plane and sending it into the sea. About 60 Americans were on board, including a member of Congress.

Several pundits on Fox News used the 1983 crash to illustrate how unfavorably President Barack Obama compares to President Ronald Reagan. They criticized Obama for attending a fundraiser and sticking with his regular schedule on the day the Malaysian plane went down.

- An abbreviated timeline from 1983

Korean Air 007 left Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 31, 1983. At about 2:30 p.m. the plane vanished from radar screens. There was significant uncertainty as to what had happened.

It took until the middle of the night Thursday Sept. 1 before U.S. officials knew that the plane had been shot down with no survivors. Secretary of State George Shultz spoke to the press that morning. At that time, he had not spoken to Reagan, although others had briefed the president.

Up to this point, Reagan was on vacation at his Santa Barbara, Calif., ranch.

White House spokesman Larry Speakes gave a statement to reporters in California: "The president is very concerned and deeply disturbed about the loss of life aboard the Korean Air Lines flight overnight," Speakes said. "There are no circumstances that can justify the unprecedented attack on an unarmed civilian aircraft. The Soviet Union owes an explanation to the world about how and why this tragedy has occurred."

When asked if Reagan would be returning to Washington, Speakes said he would not.

"There are no plans for the president to return to Washington earlier than anticipated," he said. The president "has every facility, every capacity, every capability to do, perform any function that he could perform in Washington."

About eight hours later, Speakes called the reporters together again and announced that Reagan would return to Washington, D.C., the next day, Friday.

As Reagan was leaving California, he read a brief statement.

''I speak for all Americans and for the people everywhere who cherish civilized values in protesting the Soviet attack on an unarmed civilian passenger plane,'' Reagan said. ''Words can scarcely express our revulsion at this horrifying act of violence."

Reagan wrote this in his diary that evening: "We were due to return to Wash. on Labor Day but realized we couldn’t wait so we left on Fri. It was heartbreaking. I had really looked forward to those last three days. When we got in Fri, I went directly to a NSC (National Security Council) meeting re the Soviet affair."

On Sept. 5, 1983, four days after the jet was shot down, Reagan spoke to the nation for about 18 minutes in a televised address.

A Fox News host corrects his colleagues

Chris Wallace, host of Fox News Sunday, tried to correct the record on Fox. During an interview on the network’s morning show Fox and Friends, Wallace explained his experiences covering Reagan in 1983.

"He was in Santa Barbara at his ranch when this happened, and quite frankly he didn't want to leave," Wallace said.