A video shared on X claims to show a plane that accidentally released “the chemtrail vaporizer” while on the ground. 

A pilot accidentally releases the chemtrail vaporizer while still at the airport terminal. pic.twitter.com/CQwaq0Zixj

— David Wolfe (@DavidWolfe) October 22, 2024

Verdict: False

The claim is baseless. It actually shows the result of an auxiliary power unit (APU) fire.

Fact Check: 

Japan Airlines is offering free domestic connections to certain international travelers who are already flying into Japan in order to encourage tourists to visit less popular destinations, according to New York Post. The list includes travelers from North America, many Asian countries and Australia after they’ve booked international tickets, the outlet reported.

An X video appears to show a Japan Airlines airplane parked at an airport and letting off a great amount of smoke, which appears to have a slight orange tint. The caption claims the smoke is “chemtrail vaporizer.”

“A pilot accidentally releases the chemtrail vaporizer while still at the airport terminal,” the caption reads. (RELATED: Did Former CIA Director Admit The Chemtrail Conspiracy Theory Is Real?)

This claim is baseless, however. The video was previously posted to YouTube in August 2020. “Short video showing APU burning oil,” the description reads in part. “This could happen after heavy maintenance when there are oil leftovers in the APU.” APU stands for auxiliary power unit, which is a small engine that “provides important electric power for aircraft systems and bleed air to start the main engines,” according to aviation news company Simple Flying.

“The airline has confirmed that there was no such record of the incident reported,” a Japan Airlines spokesperson confirmed in an email to Check Your Fact. “Although it is possible that the APU (auxiliary power unit) malfunction caused the APU system oil to leak at the high temperature of the APU exhaust port, causing white smoke, there is no record of the large amount of white smoke seen in the video.”

The video previously went viral in March 2023, when BBC Verify journalist Shayan Sardarizadeh made a post debunking the claim. “It’s actually a Japan Airlines plane burning off excess oil in its Auxiliary Power Unit (APU),” the post reads, in part. It was also debunked by Logically Facts at the time. 

This video, viewed 2.5 million times, claims to show a pilot “accidentally releasing chemicals” at an airport, thus supposedly proving the chemtrails conspiracy theory.

It’s actually a Japan Airlines plane burning off excess oil in its Auxiliary Power Unit (APU). pic.twitter.com/2s06Eq4Nat

— Shayan Sardarizadeh (@Shayan86) March 18, 2023