Chemtrails

Was German Lufthansa pilot "Christoph W." terminated by his employer for refusing to spray chemtrails, and did he then sue them in Nuremberg? No, that's not true: The story originated on the YouTube channel of "Der Postillon," a well-known German satire website. The site has a FAQ that says, "Everything in the Postillon is satire and therefore a blatant lie"…

Does a video captured by a New Jersey resident show a drone spraying something in the sky? No, that's not true: The video showed a commercial Boeing 777 jetliner gradually descending as it nears the end of a transatlantic flight from London to Baltimore. Lead Stories cross-referenced the timestamp and location tag from the original video with flight and weather…

Did former CIA Director John Brennan reveal that the U.S. government uses Stratospheric Aerosol Injection, a hypothetical geoengineering technology, to control the weather? No, that's not true: A full video of his 2016 speech shows that Brennan said no such thing. He was discussing his interest in technologies that could potentially reverse climate change; he did not say that these…

Does a video on social media show what it looked like when a pilot accidentally hit the "chemtrail switch" too early while taking off in -45 degrees Celsius in Siberia? No, that's not true: The false caption poking fun at chemtrail conspiracists originated with an r/aviation forum Reddit repost with a satire tag. This video, originally posted in 2012 by…

Does a video that shows what is said to be a magnet sticking to packaged supermarket chicken prove that such products contain nanotechnology and heavy metals? No, that's not true: The U.S. Department of Agriculture ensures that poultry products are safe and unadulterated, an agency spokesperson told Lead Stories. Magnets, they added, may stick to meat and poultry products due…

Did Disney and Google buy the rights to the first King James Version of the Bible? No, that's not true: No sources are cited in the Instagram post where the claim is stated. The claim first appeared in a 2018 article from The Babylon Bee, a well-known satirical website. Lead Stories could not find any supporting evidence that would corroborate…

Does a video of two jet aircraft passing in opposite directions show that one is producing a contrail and the other is producing something else -- perhaps a mythical "chemtrail"? No, that's not true: Both planes are producing contrails. The length of the jet's contrail, which consists of mostly water vapor, depends on atmospheric conditions and does not indicate something…

Did NASA announce it is planning to inject millions of tons of ice into the atmosphere? No, that's not true: NASA has no plans to carry out such a large-scale intervention in the atmosphere. This claim is a misinterpretation of a proposed geoengineering concept, which suggests using ice particles to reflect sunlight and potentially moderate the effects of climate change.…

Does a video on Instagram of an Alexa digital assistant prove the accuracy of the chemtrails conspiracy theory that the U.S. government sprays aluminum in the sky for nefarious purposes? No, that's not true: There is no verified evidence of a widespread U.S. government program to spray metal nanoparticles in the sky. Amazon's Alexa produces answers gathered from a variety…

Does a recording of Amazon's virtual assistant reciting a conspiratorial answer to "Alexa, What are they spraying in our skies?" prove the "chemtrails" theory of a global conspiracy to depopulate the planet with chemicals sprayed from above? No, that's not true: While Amazon confirmed on January 18, 2024 that the recording of Alexa was authentic, a spokesperson said Alexa has…