FACT CHECK: Does This Video Show The Recent Plane Crash In Nepal?

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

A video shared on Facebook claims to show the January 2023 plane crash of a Yeti Airlines aircraft in Nepal.

Verdict: False

The video is from Russia and takes place in 2021, not 2023.

Fact Check:

An airplane carrying 72 people crashed in Nepal, killing all people aboard the flight, making it the deadliest crash in 30 years, according to The Associated Press. The cause of the crash is not known, though experts have stated it could range from engine failure to pilot error, the outlet reported.

The Facebook video allegedly shows the crash in question, featuring a plane catching fire midair before slowly descending and crashing in a wooded area. The video’s caption reads, “A video was taken before the Nepal Plane Crash on Monday, January 16, 2023.”

This video, however, depicts a different event. Through a reverse image search, Check Your Fact found that the video is from 2021 and shows a Russian military transport aircraft prototype, not a Nepal-based airliner. The original video, which is of higher quality than the one in the Facebook post, was shared by the Moscow Times.

Three individuals were killed in the crash, which took place near the landing strip of the Kubinka airfield outside of Moscow, according to the Moscow Times. The Associated Press also published images and videos from the crash, attributing them to Dmitry Ovchinnikov. (RELATED: Does This Photo Show A Former UK Health Minister With His Book ‘How To Get Away With Murder?’)

Social media users often take images and videos from previous incidents and present them as footage of current incidents. For example, Check Your Fact recently debunked an image claiming to show a Brazilian protester, wearing clothing similar to the “QAnon Shaman,” storming Brazil’s Congress.

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
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