Joe Biden received a military funeral service Jan. 20, 2021
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Bury the falsehood, not the president. Biden never had a funeral and still lives.
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President Joe Biden is alive. There is no evidence that he received a military funeral service the day he was inaugurated in 2021.
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The "Executive One" flight featured in the post was carrying first lady Jill Biden, who had attended the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s women’s championship game in Dallas.
We didn't think that this needed repeating, but President Joe Biden is alive, despite posts on social media declaring otherwise.
An April 2 Facebook post that received over 1,200 reactions claimed as much, stating in its caption that, "It being that Joe Biden received a full grade Military Funeral Service on January 20, 2021, we know what Family is on this." The post was shared by a page called "1776 Nation," which often spreads QAnon conspiracy theories.
Images alongside the post show a plane traveling from Dallas with the call sign "EXEC1," and screenshots of a Wikipedia post that explains who typically travels on the plane.
This post is bogus and was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook.)
Biden did not receive a "full grade" military funeral service Jan. 20, 2021. That’s the day he was sworn in as the 46th U.S. president. The deaths of current and former U.S. presidents draw worldwide news coverage, and there is none to corroborate this unfounded claim.
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The only thing the post gets right is the information about Executive One or "EXEC1," which is the air traffic control call sign for any civil aircraft carrying the president.
When transporting the first lady or other members of the president's family, but not the president himself, the flight can use the call sign "Executive One Foxtrot" or "EXEC1F."
The military helicopter that normally has the Marine One call sign is assigned as Executive One when it ferries the outgoing president from the U.S. Capitol following a successor’s inauguration.
The image of an April 2 flight featured in the post was carrying first lady Jill Biden, who had attended the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s women’s basketball championship game in Dallas.
We rate this Pants on Fire!
Our Sources
Facebook post, April 2, 2023
Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Organization Policy, Dec. 10, 2015
CBS News, Inauguration 2021: Swearing in of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, Jan. 20, 2021
The New York Times, Airport delay creates a campaign dispute, December 1999
Radarbox.com, EXEC1F flight, April 2, 2023
White House Office of the first lady pooled press reports, April 1-2, 2023
Dallas Morning News, First lady Jill Biden attends Iowa vs. LSU Final Four game in Dallas, April 2, 2023
PolitiFact, President Joe Biden is alive and traveling; he wasn’t executed, Feb. 20, 2023
Email interview, Tammy Jones, spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration, Apri 3, 2023
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Bury the falsehood, not the president. Biden never had a funeral and still lives.
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