Is it true that a transgender woman controlled a military helicopter encountered in Washington?

After at the end of January 2025 in the sky over Washington, a passenger aircraft ran into a military helicopter, information spread on the network that there was a transperson behind the helm of the latter. We checked the reliability of such publications.

At the end of January 2025, a plane crash occurred near Washington Airport, as a result of which Died 67 people, including Soviet and Russian skaters, who have been working in the United States for many years. Two days later, American Users X, and then the Russian media reported that behind the helm of a helicopter encountered with a passenger side, was the pilot-senior Joe Ellis, a transgender woman who served in the National Guard of Virginia. Some resources emphasized that it was she who was guilty of the incident. So, the publication News.ru released a note under the heading "Transgender killed Russian skaters in the USA", and "Arguments and facts»Name their material" Revenge of LGBT. Behind the death of Russian skaters is a transgender antitrampist. ” Russian social networks Approved: “The pilot controlled the aircraft randomly, ignoring the height changes,” which could cause a disaster. Similar publications were gained by hundreds of thousands of views, in particular in Telegram channels "Anatoly Shariy"(1 million views at the time of writing this analysis),"Live broadcast"(767 000),"Sanya in Florida"(516 200),"Veteran zapis"(104 900) and others.

On the night of January 30, next to the Reagan Washington Airport It happened Airlines: passenger aircraft of the American Airlines airline during an approach to the landing helicopter of the Black Hawk of the American Air Force. On board the aircraft were 60 passengers and four crew members, and three military personnel in a helicopter. None of them survived. Soon during the investigation were Name The names of two of the three dead members of the Black Hawk crew. The name of the third was not made public, which provoked a wave of rumors about the personality of this person.

One of the first name of the third dead military was published by the American edition of Santa Monica Observer - the corresponding article was released under the heading of a transgender pilot named Joe Ellis to the Black Hawk helicopter to the American Airlines airport at Reagan Airport. " This note was later removed, but Facebook users managed to publish Screenshots With comments like: “It’s sad, very sad. Mental illness caused by the actions of our own government? "

Following the American Internet users, the Russian media and Telegram channels also disseminated information about Ellis's involvement in the clash. Some bloggers Approvedthat the plane crash could be adjusted by it intentionally - as an act of terrorism. According to another version, Ellis intentionally provoked collision in response to decree US President Donald Trump from January 27, prohibiting transgender people to serve in the army.

January 31 Ellis Published Facebook post, refuting his death or involvement in the incident. She called the accusations madness and disrespect for the families of cream victims, which "deserve the best than Internet trolling." About two hours after this publication Ellis also Published Video with "Proof of Life":

“An interesting morning. This is Joe Ellis, I am the Black Hawk pilot of the National Guard Virginia. I understand that some people associate me with a disaster in the district of Colombia, and this is not true. Trying to connect this with some kind of political program is offensive to families [dead]; They do not deserve this, I do not deserve it, and I hope that you all know that I am alive and well, and this should be enough for you to put an end to all rumors. I also have a statement: the Ministry of Defense is responsible for notifications of losses. On that Black Hawk, which collided with a liner on Wednesday evening, there were no military personnel of the National Guard of Virginia. Thank you".

January 28 - after Trump signed a decree on the ban on transperson to serve in the army and shortly before the plane crash at Reagan Airport, Ellis Published A column about his military career. It says that the pilot joined the National Guard of Virginia in 2009, served in Iraq, Guatemala and Kuwait. In 2023, Ellis notified the command in the intention to make a trans -transition and, having received approval, began hormonal therapy. In the column, it emphasizes that the pilot combines the service with the work of the IT engineer in the private sector and, thanks to this, pays for medical services related to treatment gender dysphoria. “I have served in one division for 15 years. I want to last at least 15 years. I love my state and love my country, ”says Ellis. She also thanked the colleagues for their support. 

February 2 Army representative declaredthat the third dead member of the Black Hawk crew was Captain Rebecca Lobak. It was she who was behind the helm of a helicopter (it is noted that the name of the military was not revealed at the request of relatives). There is no information that Lobak was a transpersesone (as well as her dead colleagues: the senior ward officer Andrew Lloyd and senior sergeant Ryan Austin O'Hara) is not in open sources.

Apparently, the primary source of the Ellis involvement in the disaster was the user of the social network X @fakegaypolitics, who wrote: “The Black Hawk pilot was identified as the senior warest officer of the 2nd class of Joe Ellis, a transgender woman. Joe Ellis served in the National Guard of Virginia for 15 years and made a transition as a pilot. Joe made radical antitrim statements on social networks. ” The post was deleted in the evening of the same day.

In the Russian media space, false news about the death of Joe Ellis also appeared on January 31. One of the earliest “verified” publications was the post of member of the Public Chamber of Dagestan Shamilya Khadulaevathat appeared in his Telegram channel January 31 at 10:31 Moscow time. Two hours later, the same false information was published by Deputy General Director of VGTRK and former deputy of the Moscow City Duma Andrey Medvedevwhose post scored 230,000 views. It is to this post that many Telegram channels refer, which later shared this fake.

Thus, the transgender pilot Joe Ellis was not involved in the plane crash on January 29 near the airport in Washington. Refuting her death, Ellis recorded a video in which she called such messages inventing trolls.

Photo on the cover: social networks

Fake

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. Is it true that after the collapse of the aircraft in the United States, the rapper Potap expressed condolences to everyone except Russians?
2. Meduza. This is a terrible tragedy for a world sports family. In the plane crash near Washington, Russian skaters Evgenia Shishkova, Vadim Naumov, Inna Volyanskaya and Alexander Kirsanov died.
3. Reuters. Fact Check: Trans National Guard Pilot Not on Craced Black Hawk in DC
4. CNN. What is DEI and why is it sharing American society?
5. Is it true that Biden allowed men who made a transgender transition to participate in women's sports competitions?