Experts confirm Palm Beach jet crash video is authentic
A Learjet 60 crashed near Cresthaven, Florida, on Nov. 1, killing all nine people aboard, despite social media claims that the footage was fake.
By Austin Reed ·
The video is real.
A private jet crashed into a residential neighborhood in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday, Nov. 1, at 12:51 p.m. ET. The aircraft, identified as a Learjet 60, was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it nosedived into the pavement. The impact created a crater and ignited a fire. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that all nine individuals on board died in the incident.
Dash cam footage captured the moment of impact. The clip shows the plane hitting the ground at high speed and dissolving into smoke. This video has been verified by major news organizations, including The Associated Press, CNN, CBS News, and the BBC. The original source is Aki Kuusisto, a digital creator from West Palm Beach, who first shared the clip on Facebook. Kuusisto commented on the post, noting that this was not the intended purpose of the installed dash cam.
Despite widespread verification, some users on X questioned the authenticity of the footage. A post from Nov. 1 claimed the video was 100% AI-generated. The post included a screen recording from Hive Moderation, an AI-detection tool, which flagged the clip as artificial. Other users shared similar doubts, suggesting that someone was lying about the nature of the crash.
PolitiFact Florida, which partners with WLRN to fact-check claims, investigated the video. When the team submitted Kuusisto’s original clip to Hive Moderation, the tool did not flag it as AI-generated or manipulated. Darren Linvill, co-director of the Media Forensics Hub at Clemson University, explained that skepticism is natural as AI technology improves. However, he noted that some people have become so distrustful of digital media that they reject true events. He referred to this phenomenon as the liar’s dividend.
Linvill stated that people are accustomed to being lied to, which makes it hard to recognize the truth when it is presented. He added that while personal recording devices make such captures common, reliable sources remain essential. One X account that questioned the footage was amplified by bot accounts linked to Russian Storm-1516. This campaign uses influencers to promote false claims in the United States and other countries.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash. NTSB member Tom Chapman said on Nov. 2 that the aircraft experienced turbulence and encountered ice. Timothy Monville, who is leading the investigation, described the agency’s efforts as just begun. He explained that recovering major wreckage from the crater on the roadway is the biggest obstacle. Monville said the on-site work would take several days to complete.
