No Star Wars: Claims about Elon Musk and a “UFO fighter jet” are Pants on Fire!

Is Elon Musk preparing for real-life “Star Wars”? 

“Breaking News: Elon Musk unveils UFO fighter jet that defies physics,” a Nov. 2 Facebook post said. “The spacecraft, named Ethereon, is said to be equipped with propulsion technology that transcends known aerodynamics, utilizing an anti-gravity drive system based on principles of quantum physics.” 

The Facebook post is one of many making the same claim. Each post features a photo of a vessel, likely generated by artificial intelligence, each with a different design. 

(Screenshot of Facebook posts)

The posts earned thousands of likes, and commenters appeared to believe the claim, writing, “An amazing achievement!!!,” and, “This is an amazing invention of man.” 

Musk is no stranger to social media misinformation. He is the world’s richest man, a close ally of President-elect Donald Trump and the CEO of SpaceX, a rocket company that has had several successful launches into outer space. But viral claims about a gravity-defying fighter jet are invented. 

The Facebook post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Threads and Instagram.)

PolitiFact reviewed Nexis news archives and found no reports of Musk “unveiling” a fighter jet created by SpaceX. The “updates” page on SpaceX’s website makes no mention of a new product that fits this description. 

A gravity-defying, physics-shattering spaceship with an “infinite energy source” would have made major headlines – but none exist. 

We rate the claim that Elon Musk unveiled a UFO fighter jet that defies physics Pants on Fire! 

By

Grace Abels

Staff writer

November 8, 2024

Truth-o-meter Ruling

Pants on Fire!

IF YOUR TIME IS SHORT

• PolitiFact found no credible news reports of rocket company SpaceX unveiling a fighter jet named "Ethereon."

Statement

“Elon Musk unveils UFO fighter jet that defies physics.”

Context

a post

Speaker/Target

Speaker: Facebook posts

Statement Date

November 2, 2024