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Who is Jo Ellis? Trans Black Hawk pilot wrongly named in crash breaks silence; ‘I don’t deserve this’
Jo Ellis, a Virginia Army National Guard helicopter pilot, was misidentified as the captain of the downed Black Hawk.
Jo Ellis, a Virginia Army National Guard helicopter pilot, was misidentified as the captain of the downed Black Hawk. Following the huge uproar on social media, Ellis, who is transgender, posted a video on social media as “proof of life” to reassure people that she is alive and had not piloted the crashed helicopter.
"The Blackhawk helicopter pilot involved in the Washington D.C. Reagan National Airport #planecrash has been identified as transgender military pilot Jo Ellis," said a now-deleted January 31 post on X.
“Reports indicate Ellis attempted to take out three other passenger planes before colliding midair with American Airlines Flight 5342 over the Potomac. Just one day before the disaster, Ellis appeared on the Michael Smerconish podcast, slamming Trump's military trans ban.”
While some posts were removed or edited, others went viral on other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.
According to a military official, the chopper carried three US Army soldiers, while American Airlines declared that there were 60 passengers and four crew members on board. At least 67 bodies have been recovered from the river so far, but authorities stated they do not anticipate any survivors.
Jo Ellis breaks silence
However, the claims that Ellis was the helicopter pilot were dismissed, when she posted a video on Facebook, saying: “I understand some people have associated me with the crash in D.C. and that is false.”
“It is insulting to the families to try to tie this to some sort of political agenda. They don’t deserve that. I don’t deserve this.”
The lies, which attempted to link Ellis's transgender identity to the disaster, went viral after President Donald Trump and his supporters tried to link the Washington, D.C. crash to so-called “D.E.I. programs,” a collection of initiatives designed to increase workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Pentagon reveals names of two out of three pilots
Following the crash, thousands of users on X posted pictures and information about Ellis online, causing a spike in posts and reposts. According to Trends24, a website that monitors trending topics, “Jo Ellis” was ranking second in the US on X with almost 90,000 postings on Friday, NY Times reported.
The Department of Defense confirmed the names of two deceased pilots. However, Pentagon refused to share the third pilot's name “at the request of the family.”
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp wrote a condolence post on X on January 30 to the families and friends of pilots Ryan O'Hara and Sam Lilley.
“Both of these young Georgians shared a passion for flight and for serving others, and this terrible tragedy is that much more difficult knowing their lives were cut so unexpectedly short,” Kemp stated.
