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On January 30, 2025, as the nation was grappling with the devastating DC plane tragedy, social media posts accusing Jo Ellis of deliberately crashing the black hawk helicopter surfaced online.
Authorities have not officially released details about the identities of the crew 0onboard the helicopter. However, multiple social media posts identified Chief Warrant Officer Jo Ellis as the co-pilot of the Black Hawk helicopter that collided with the American Airlines plane, killing 64 people onboard.
A January 31 publication by The Daily Mail alleged that the co-pilot of the Black Hawk “was a woman who was being evaluated.” The publication cited a Fox News report that allegedly stated: "a woman with 500 hours of flying experience" was co-piloting the helicopter alongside Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves. It should be noted there were no survivors from the helicopter.
Shortly after, several social media posts identified the alleged female co-pilot as a transgender pilot, CW2 Jo Ellis. While the source of the rumor is unknown, the posts went viral online, prompting Jo Eliis to trend both on Google and X. A post with over 44K views read:
“Almost no one is reporting that the pilot of the Black Hawk, identified as Chief Warrant Officer 2 (CW2) Jo Ellis, was a transgender woman with many anti-Trump posts. He transitioned at some point while serving as a pilot."
However, this is false. Jo Ellis was not the co-pilot of the black hawk that collided with the American Airlines plane on Wednesday. As the misinformation spread online, Jo Ellis issued a statement via Facebook post, denying she was involved in the incident.
Ellis slammed the misinformation spreading online, stating this was hurtful and insulting to the victims and the families who lost loved ones. She said:
“Some craziness has happened on the internet and I’m being named as one of the pilots of the DC crash. Please report any accounts or posts you see. It’s insulting to the victims and families of those lost and they deserve better than this BS from the bots and trolls of the internet.”
Who Is Jo Ellis?
The day before Jo Ellis was falsely identified as the Black Hawk helicopter pilot, she appeared on Sirius XM Radio host Michael Smerconish's podcast. During the interview, she delved into her fears about a new executive order issued by President Trump, stating she may no longer be able to serve her country in the military.
According to the podcast episode's show notes, Ellis, a transgender woman, is a former Digital Manager of smerconish.com. For 15 years she has served in the Virginia Army National Guard as a UH60 Black Hawk helicopter pilot. She works in the private IT sector when she is not serving in the army.
In an article published by smerconish.com, she revealed her great-uncle and grandfather both served in the army during World War II. Her older brother also served in the Army as an M1 Abrams tank operator in Iraq in 2003.
Trending
Ellis reportedly joined the Virginia Army National Guard in 2009 as a 15G helicopter mechanic. Ellis said she had symptoms of what she now knows to be “Gender Dysphoria” since she was 5 years old. This was exacerbated during the pandemic. After a discussion with her spouse, she reportedly decided to transition in 2023. Ellis reportedly came out to her unit in 2024 and was met with overwhelming support.
Newsweek reported they reached out to Ellis after she was falsely named as Black Hawk co-pilot. She has yet to respond to the publication.
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