Man Blamed Transgender Pilot for 67-Fatality Collision Near National Airport

Shortly after 67 people were killed in a mid-air collision near Reagan National Airport (DCA), social media influencer Matt Wallace took it upon himself to point fingers at a transgender Army pilot. The absurdly untrue rumor went viral, earning Wallace a fat lawsuit for defamation.

The accident occurred on January 29 when a US Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with an American Airlines Bombardier CRJ700, sending both aircraft plummeting into the Potomac River near DCA. All 67 people on board were killed in the crash.

Matt Wallace, most well-known for his somewhat unhinged right-wing comments on social media platform X, allegedly made a post after the accident claiming that the helicopter pilot had been “a transgender”. He then uploaded a photo of Jo Ellis, a 15-year service member and pilot for the Virginia Army National Guard.

The content immediately gained traction, causing Wallace to delete the initial post. He didn’t stop taking digs at Ellis, however, publishing more photos of her and stating that she “wrote a long letter about ‘Gender Dysphoria’ and depression” shortly before the mid-air occurred. Wallace also accused Ellis of being a part of “another trans terror attack.”

Jo Ellis was one of millions to view these posts, though she was alive and far from DC rather than on a crash site as Wallace claimed. She was forced to read thousands of hate comments and respond to family members that frantically texted her, trying to figure out if she had died. Shortly after, on April 9, Ellis found a lawyer and filed a lawsuit against Wallace for defamation.

"When Plaintiff (Ellis) awoke on January 31, 2025, she discovered she was the second most-trending topic in the United States on X with more than 90,000 posts mentioning her name or her likeness," the lawsuit read. "Given her immediate notoriety and the fact that she is a transgender woman, she fears for the immediate safety of herself and her family on account of the hate inspired against her by Defendant’s lies."

FMI: https://va.ng.mil