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A transgender Black Hawk aviator has been wrongly named arsenic 1 of the 3 US Army unit flying the chopper that collided with a level successful Washington DC.
Jo Ellis, 34, was misidentified arsenic the pistillate co-pilot of the doomed chopper connected Thursday.
A shaken-sounding Ellis picked up the telephone erstwhile called by DailyMail.com Friday morning, confirming that she was not killed.
Ellis added: 'I americium precise overmuch alive.'
She said the mendacious rumors had 'shocked,' her with the Pentagon said to beryllium preparing a connection successful a bid to debunk the online lies.
Ellis, who antecedently worked for CNN prima Michael Smerconish, said the slurs are 'disrespectful to the families' of the 67 radical killed successful Wednesday night's disaster.
On Friday, it emerged the co-pilot of the US Army Black Hawk Sikorsky UH-60 was pistillate servicemember connected a grooming sortie.
She has not been identified.
Chief Warrant Officer Andrew Eaves and Ryan O'Hara from Georgia were the different 2 work unit connected board.
Transgender servicewoman Jo Ellis has been falsely named arsenic the co-pilot of the US Army Black Hawk chopper that crashed into a rider level Wednesday night, sidesplitting 67
Chief Warrant Officer 2, Andrew Eaves and Paul O'Hara from Georgia were some connected committee the crashed Black Hawk and died successful the explosion. A third, pistillate co-pilot has not been named
The chopper is said to person flown astatine a higher than mean altitude erstwhile it collided with American Eagle formation 5342 arsenic it came into onshore astatine Reagan National Airport successful Washington DC soon earlier 9pm ET Wednesday night.
Horrifying video footage showed the 2 craft collide successful a fireball earlier plunging into the icy Potomac River conscionable eastbound of Reagan's runways.
The 3 soldiers aboard the Black Hawk were each killed, arsenic were the 60 passengers and 4 unit aboard the Bombardier CRJ-700 aircraft.
Investigators are inactive moving to found what caused the crash, with betterment efforts ongoing Friday arsenic 14 bodies stay successful the water.
On Thursday nighttime it emerged an aerial postulation controller astatine Reagan airdrome had been sent location from their displacement early, meaning connected idiosyncratic was successful complaint of some level and chopper traffic.
Footage of the Black Hawk crashing into the broadside of the level has besides sparked speculation the chopper was to blame.
Robert Isoms, CEO of American Eagle's genitor institution American Airlines, questioned wherefore the chopper had crossed the way of the airliner.
President Trump suggested diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies were to blame, with immoderate online 'sleuths' subsequently singling retired Jo Ellis.
A blog written by Ellis said she had spent her puerility homeschooled for astir of her education, and had struggled with sex dysmorphia since the property of five.
Ellis spent years successful the subject and says she knew she was trans from a young age, but lone began surviving arsenic a pistillate recently
She precocious penned a soul-baring blog astir beingness arsenic a trans servicewoman for CNN prima Michael Smerconish - her erstwhile employer
This is the infinitesimal the Black Hawk chopper collided with the American Eagle Bombardier CRJ-7000 Wednesday evening, sidesplitting each 67 connected board
Recovery efforts proceed connected Friday morning, with 14 bodies inactive unaccounted for
She joined the subject successful 2009 arsenic a 15G chopper mechanic successful the Virginia National Guard, and went connected to deploy to Iraq with Operation New Dawn 2 years later.
After earning the Air Medal for her valor successful the Middle East, she besides served successful Guatemala and Kuwait successful consequent years.
While saying she worked done sex dysmorphia by trying to go ‘more palmy and much manly’, she got married, adopted a canine and raised a stepdaughter, arsenic ‘all the things I thought a bully antheral should do.’
Ellis wrote that successful 2020, she was ‘accepted into the Army’s Warrant Officer Flight Training program. I completed Warrant Officer Candidate School, SERE School (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape), and the UH60 Black Hawk chopper course.’
She said that the pandemic and the rigors of formation schoolhouse led her to face her sex dysphoria and decide, with the enactment of her spouse, to transition.
She said erstwhile she told her subject commanders successful 2023, she was met with contiguous support.
The time earlier the tragic collision implicit Reagan International Airport, Ellis had fixed an interrogation with Sirius XM DJ and CNN big Michael Smerconish, whose Smerconish.com website she erstwhile managed.
Ellis spoke of her pridefulness successful serving 15 years successful the subject and conflict with sex dysmorphia earlier coming out.
She said successful the interrogation she presently serves successful the National Guard arsenic a Blackhawk chopper pilot, arsenic good arsenic moving a backstage assemblage IT job.
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