Fact Check: Did Trump post about vacancies in the Air Force after the C-130 crash?
WASHINGTON, DC: Following the reported crash of the United States’ C-130 aircraft, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms, claiming to show a post by President Donald Trump announcing the death of crew members in the crash, and highlighting the vacancy in the Air Force. Let us fact-check whether Trump actually posted it.
Claim: Donald Trump posted about vacancies in Air Force after C-130 crash
The claim surfaced in the form of a screenshot showing a post by Trump on his official Truth Social handle. The alleged post states, “An old C-130 plane crashed very outdated, nobody really talks about that."
"Sadly, 8 soldiers lost their lives. We honor them. But it also means 8 new vacancies in the Air Force. We're going to rebuild stronger, better than ever.”
The screenshot has been amplified by various accounts on X, garnering more than a million views.
Fact Check: Fake, Donald Trump did not post it
The screenshot, however, is fake, as there are no records of the president posting it. A search of his official social media account for the text shown in the screenshot yielded no results.
A search of the X account that automatically archives the president’s Truth Social posts also did not yield any results matching the words in the screenshot.
Further checks on credible news platforms and official communication channels also reveal no evidence that Trump made the quoted remarks.
There are also no dates or reaction icons under the screenshot, further proving that the screenshot is digitally manipulated.
A fact check by Grok AI stated, “Yes, 100% fake. No record of this post exists on Trump's Truth Social account (verified via direct searches of the exact quote and recent activity). Recent TS posts from him reference Iran events positively around rescues, not this.”
Iran claims the downing of the C-130 and Black Hawks
According to a spokesperson for Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the unified command of the Iranian armed forces, the downed aircraft included a C-130 military transport plane and two Black Hawk helicopters in southern Isfahan.
"The enemy's aircraft intruding in southern Isfahan, which included two Black Hawk helicopters and one C-130 military transport plane, were hit and are now burning," the military's central command stated.
It also mentioned that the rescue operation had failed. Reports included photos showing the charred remains of the C-130 at a temporary forward operations base in Iran.
