Fact Check: Did US military GPS jamming cause a plane crash killing four?
WASHINGTON, DC: Several posts claiming that the US military's GPS signal jamming caused the crash of a private medical transport plane that killed several people in May 2026 began circulating online in August 2026. The incident happened on May 14, when a small medical plane crashed in New Mexico.
The crash killed four people: Generation Jets pilots Keelan Clark and Ali Kawsara, and Trans Aero MedEvac flight nurses Sarah Clark and Jamie Novick. Was the US military responsible for the crash?
Claim: US military GPS jamming caused a plane crash in New Mexico
Holy shit... Wired reports that back in May, the U.S. Military was testing an experimental GPS jammer and and caused a civilian plane to crash into the side of a mountain, killing everyone on board. https://t.co/QZOu5YYeAt pic.twitter.com/zp4bJesp9Y
— Bryce Greene (@TheGreeneBJ) August 4, 2026
The claim first surfaced in June 2026 and gained wider attention after Wired reported on it in late July.
Another news outlet covered the story in early August, saying, "New bombshell reporting by Wired reveals an incident in which the testing of an experimental GPS jammer resulted in a medical plane crashing into the side of a mountain."
The outlet also added, "Unfortunately, the disoriented crew ran straight into the side of a mountain they likely never saw, resulting in the loss of every life on board. It’s the first known instance where military GPS jamming played a role in downing a civilian plane in US airspace. Reported incidents of GPS jamming within the continental US have skyrocketed in recent years."
The claim soon spread across social media, where users shared it with comments such as, "How is this story not all over the place?"
In May Hegseth was testing experimental jamming weapons without proper warning. It caused a civilian medevac plane to crash into a New Mexico mountain, KILLING everyone onboard! Air Traffic Control couldn't help. They were busy helping 3 other aircraft that also lost GPS. pic.twitter.com/MX93QR3es1
— Spunky0613 (@KarenHoward42) August 4, 2026
The May 14 crash killed all four people on board and also sparked a wildfire that forced nearby residents to evacuate. The fire burned more than 31,000 acres before firefighters fully contained it on June 12.
After the fire was contained, The Associated Press reported that the aircraft's GPS "malfunctioned because the military was jamming that signal throughout the area at the time, although pilots had been warned to expect that."
The report cited preliminary findings about the crash but did not conclude that military GPS jamming alone caused the accident.
Fact Check: The claim is unproven
The claim that the US military caused the crash of a private medical transport plane that killed four people in New Mexico in May 2026 remains unproven. Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the crash.
The US military was indeed testing technology that jammed GPS signals in the area at the time of the crash. FAA communications from that day and the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) preliminary report confirmed that pilots had been warned about possible GPS interference.
However, investigators have not found evidence proving that the GPS jamming caused the crash, either on its own or along with other factors. The NTSB's report is only preliminary, and the investigation is still ongoing.
A retired airline pilot told The Associated Press, "The loss of GPS should not result in the loss of an airplane, so there's got to be more to it than that. … If you can see the runway, you can see the mountain. Why would you fly into it?"
