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A viral AI-generated image circulating on social media falsely depicts a Delta Airlines plane crash at Toronto Pearson International Airport, sparking concerns about aviation safety and misinformation.
The image, which received over 300,000 views on X, shows what appears to be a Delta jet flipped upside down on a runway with firefighters extinguishing flames from the alleged crash. The post claims this incident marks the eighth plane crash in 20 days, attributing the accidents to staff changes made by Trump and Musk at the FAA and Air Traffic Control.
However, advanced content detection analysis reveals the image is almost certainly artificial. Using Hive Moderation software, experts determined the image has a 98.7% probability of being AI-generated, likely created using Stable Diffusion technology. Further examination revealed a telltale “Grok” watermark in the bottom right corner, connecting it to X’s integrated AI platform.
Wow! I saw the pics yesterday & thought maybe ice or wind or something like that, I was Not expecting this! Wake turbulence? Wind? Or just a really shitty landing which can happen but this hit hard! Thank God nobody lost their life in this & everyone walked away for the most… pic.twitter.com/ZNBFuOrLuF
— Ric Bis (@bis_ric) February 18, 2025
Dr. Walter Scheirer, a University of Notre Dame AI specialist, confirmed the image’s artificial nature. “This image has obviously been generated using an AI algorithm. The airframe depicted looks nothing like a CRJ-900, the type of plane involved in the crash, and has a completely nonsensical appearance. There is too much landing gear where the cockpit should be and half of the plane is shown as being upside down, while the other half shown as right side up,” Scheirer said.
The fabricated image cannot be found in any legitimate news coverage of the actual incident. In fact, Lead Stories had already exposed the image as AI-generated on February 17, highlighting its artificial origins and the presence of the Grok identifier.
The Associated Press reported that while a Delta flight from Minneapolis did experience difficulties while landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport on February 17, the incident did not result in the plane flipping over. All 76 passengers and four crew members survived the event.
#DeltaCrash The pilot didn’t flare the aircraft before touchdown meaning the plane slammed into the ground while dropping at a rate so fast the main gear collapsed.
The right wing breaks off and the plane rolls, skidding to a stop.
— BillyBob1972 (@BillyRickiBob) February 18, 2025
