YouTuber Accused Of Staging Plane Crash For Likes And Views

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating YouTuber and former Olympic snowboarder Trevor Jacob after he posted a video online showing him bailing out of a plane after alleged engine issues.

“The FAA is investigating this event,” the agency said. “The agency does not discuss open investigations.”

The incident occurred in Los Padres National Forest near Cuyama, California, in November. It wasn’t until Dec. 24 when he uploaded the video onto YouTube, showing the alleged engine failure above rocky terrain. The YouTuber then opens the plane’s door and bails out with a parachute—cameras located on the plane capture the entire incident.

Jacob lands to safety while the plane smashes into the side of a mountain. He locates the crash and shows the wreckage.

The video has gone viral, with nearly 600k views, 5.9k likes, and 36k dislikes. The reason for a large number of dislikes is that followers believe the video was possibly staged.

Robert Perry, a flight instructor based out of Santa Ynez Airport, California, said he is suspect of Jacob’s crash. He pointed the biggest red: the pilot was wearing a parachute during takeoff.

Others on social media said Jacob “faked a plane crash for clout.”

Youtuber Trevor Jacob completely faked a plane crash for clout. He went up wearing a sport parachute which ZERO private pilots do, pitched the airplane down and jumped while making sure to film via a selfie stick

Disgusting & Fake

Source: My wife and best friend who are pilots

— TheQuartering (@TheQuartering) January 7, 2022

What stands out to us is why did Jacob strap on a parachute before taking off? That’s unusual among private pilots.

Watch the full video here.