What was claimed
Amateur footage shows that no plane actually hit the South Tower on 9/11.
Our verdict
False. This footage has been edited and the original clearly shows a plane hitting the South Tower. There is ample evidence that planes were used in the 9/11 attacks.
False claims that a second plane never hit the Twin Towers are being shared online in the aftermath of the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
A Facebook post shares a video which appears to show an explosion on the South Tower—the second tower to be attacked—without a plane hitting it. The text on the video reads: “Where is the plane? When amateur footage gets released long after the event…”
This is false. There is ample evidence that two planes hit the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers causing them to collapse.
The same clip was shared five years ago, and fact checkers explained then that the video had been edited to remove the plane hitting the South Tower.
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And the original, unedited clip wasn’t “amateur footage”—it was filmed by photojournalist Keith Lopez from the FDR highway.
The original footage clearly shows Flight 175 hitting the South Tower. The angle it is filmed from is the same as the altered video, as is the background noise and surrounding buildings. Birds can also be seen flying off in the same direction after it hits.
Many videos, pictures and eyewitness testimonies have documented Flight 175 approaching and hitting the South Tower, following the first plane hitting the North Tower 17 minutes earlier.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as altered because the video was edited to remove the plane. There is ample evidence of a plane hitting the South Tower on 9/11.
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Subscribe to weekly email newsletters from Full Fact for updates on politics, immigration, health and more. Our fact checks are free to read but not to produce, so you will also get occasional emails about fundraising and other ways you can help. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy.