After a Jeju Air plane crash-landed in southwestern South Korea in December 2024, killing all but two of the 181 people on board, a clip was shared in social media posts that falsely claimed it showed footage from inside the passenger cabin before the crash. The clip was taken from a longer video posted months before, in September 2024, by a user who told AFP it showed turbulence on a flight between Mexico and Argentina.
“All are dead. It’s very scary at the end,” read Thai-language text overlaid on a TikTok clip shared on December 30, 2024.
The clip, which appears to show a plane shaken by turbulence, was shared a day after the worst aviation disaster on South Korean soil (archived link).
Jeju Air flight 2216 belly-landed at an airport in southwestern South Korea before slamming into a concrete barrier at the end of the runway, killing all but two of its 181 passengers and crew.
The exact cause of the crash is still unknown, but investigators have pointed to a bird strike, faulty landing gear and the runway barrier as possible issues.
The clip’s caption read in part: “My condolences. Boonchuay, the victim’s father, was in shock after learning of his daughter’s death in the Jeju Air incident, where the plane crash-landed and skidded off the runway.”
Screenshot of the false TikTok post, captured on January 2, 2025
The same footage was shared alongside similar claims elsewhere on TikTok here and here.
Another TikTok post sharing the footage claimed it showed an Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crash-landed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, killing 38 of the 67 people on board (archived link).
But the clip circulated months before the plane crashes.
Flight turbulence
A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared clip led to a longer version published by TikTok user “@osbertomx” on September 27, 2024 (archived link).
Its Spanish-language caption said it showed footage from a flight between Mexico and Argentina.
In the longer clip, the captain can be heard announcing in Spanish: “We ask everyone to remain seated with seatbelts fastened, cabin crew please be seated.”
The captain then repeats the instructions for passengers in English.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the falsely shared clip (left) and the TikTok video posted in September 2024 (right):
Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared clip (left) and the TikTok video posted in September 2024 (right)
The user who posted the video, Osberto Vera, told AFP on January 8, 2025 the video was taken during a flight from Mexico to Argentina in September 2024.
“That turbulence was when we passed by the Andes, it was a bit strong but it was nothing that could not be controlled,” he said. “It lasted three minutes, something normal during trips and especially in this part of the world.”
AFP has previously debunked other misinformation related to the Jeju Air crash here and here.
