Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Plane crash-lands in Long Beach, a coastal city in California, as a result of Hurricane Hilary.
A rare tropical storm, Hilary, hit the US state of California late on Sunday, bringing fierce winds and flooding to the Pacific coast, leaving at least one person dead.
Fact
Newschecker first ran a keyword search for “hurricane hilary plane california”, which did not lead us to any news reports of any such incident. Newschecker noticed that the voiceover in the viral video mentions “production designer”, “Steven Spielberg”, sounding like a tour guide, hence raising our doubts on whether the site of the supposed crash was actually a film set. Users in the comments pointed out that the site is from Universal Studios.
A relevant keyword search led us to this Youtube video, dated June 14, 2020, stating, “..is an aeroplane crash site from Paramount Pictures’ War of the Worlds, directed by Steven Spielberg. The plane from the crash site is an authentic 747 aircraft that was cut into pieces and placed on the Universal Backlot. The War of the Worlds set still stands today on The World-Famous Studio Tour at Universal Studios Hollywood.”
Similar Youtube videos can be seen here and here, while a write-up can be seen here, confirming that the viral video is of the iconic film set created at Universal Studios Hollywood in Los Angeles for the aeroplane crash scene in the 2005 Hollywood epic War of the Worlds, starring Tom Cruise.
Also Read: No, Viral Video Does Not Show Sonia Gandhi Hoisting National Flag, Old Video Viral With False Claim
Result: False
Sources
Youtube video, June 14, 2023
Universal Studios Hollywood
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
