Virginia National Guard Black Hawk® pilot, Jo Ellis, who is a transwoman dispels rumors that she was involved in the mid-air collision in DC, saying that she is “alive and well”. She states that the Department of Defense (DoD) is responsible for casualty notifications.
So far, the DoD has only announced that the three bodies of those aboard the helicopter have been recovered and it has announced their military ranks. Their names have not yet been announced, pending the notification of next-of-kin, which is standard procedure.
The 12th Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) is a US Army unit that includes both Active Duty and National Guard components. They have taken down their Wikipedia page but Jo Ellis is correct, that there were no National Guard members involved in the DC air collision. The 12th Aviation Battalion Bravo Company that was involved in the crash is part of the Active-Duty Army. The Virginia National Guard aviation units are not located at Fort Belvoir.
Virginia Army and Air National Guard units are located in several locations throughout the State of Virginia.
The 12th CAB is garrisoned at Fort Belvoir, which is the largest employer in Fairfax County, VA, with 51,000+ employees and 7,637 residents it serves as a garrison for the following entities:
• 29th Infantry Division (Light)
• 1st Information Operations Command (Land)
• 9th Theater Support Command
• 249th Engineer Battalion (Prime Power)
• 212th Military Police Detachment (MDW)
• 55th Ordnance Company (EOD)
• 75th MP Detachment (CID)
• Army Intelligence and Security Command
• Military Intelligence Readiness Command
• 902nd Military Intelligence Group
• Defense Logistics Agency
• Defense Contract Audit Agency
• Defense Threat Reduction Agency
• Missile Defense Agency
• National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
• Aerospace Data Facility-East
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TRANSCRIPT
Interesting morning. This is Jo Ellis. I am a Black Hawk® pilot with Virginia Army National Guard.
I understand some people have associated me with the crash in DC and that is false. It is insulting to the families, to try to tie this to some sort of political agenda.
They don’t deserve that. I don’t deserve this and I hope that you all know that I’m alive and well and this should be sufficient for you all to end all the rumors.
I also have a statement: The Department of Defense is responsible for casualty notifications.
There were no Virginia National Guard personnel on that Black Hawk® that collided with the jetliner Wednesday evening. Thank you.
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