FACT CHECK: US didn’t give USS Omaha ship as gift to PH

Claim: A video shows the US Navy ship USS Omaha (LCS 12) arriving in Manila Bay, supposedly as a Christmas gift to the Philippines from the US government.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The YouTube video bearing the claim has over 4,000 views as of writing. It was uploaded by the channel Ella Vloggs, which has been repeatedly fact-checked by Rappler.

At the 0:14 to 0:48 mark, the video shows the onscreen text: “Navy combat ship ng America ibinigay na bilang bagong regalo sa mga Pilipino. Navy combat ship papasko ng America sa Pilipinas.” (America gave a Navy combat ship as a gift to Filipinos. America gave a Navy combat ship as a Christmas present to the Philippines.) 

The facts: The video uses spliced clips of USS Omaha that were originally uploaded by YouTube channel U.S. Military District on January 30, 2018. The caption of the original video says that it was taken during the ceremonial “laying of the keel” in Mobile, Alabama on February 18, 2015. 

USS Omaha’s profile in the Naval Vessel Register of the US Navy confirms the date of the “laying of the keel” ceremony.

The misleading YouTube video from Ella Vloggs spliced several clips from the original video, as seen in the following timestamps:

• The first clip shown in Ella Vloggs’ video can be seen at the original video’s 2:56 to 3:03 mark
• The second clip matches the 2:44 to 2:55 timestamp of the original video
• The third clip matches the 2:37 to 2:43 timestamp of the original video

The clips are also inverted, reversed, and slowed down in the spliced version.

No confirmation: There are also no posts or announcements from the Facebook pages of the US Navy, the Philippine Navy, the Philippine Department of National Defense, and the US embassy in the Philippines confirming that the USS Omaha was given to the Philippines.

Previous related fact-checks: This year, Rappler has fact-checked several false claims related to military equipment allegedly given as gifts or donations by several countries to the Philippines:

• FACT CHECK: PH did not send helicopters for Israel’s war vs Hamas
  (November 8, 2023)
• FACT CHECK: Philippines has not received a warship from Russia
  (March 17, 2023)
• FACT CHECK: The Philippines has not been gifted tanks by the US in 2023
  (March 16, 2023)
• FACT CHECK: Australia didn’t donate a Chinook helicopter to the Philippines
  (March 10, 2023)
• FACT CHECK: Video shows Indonesian Navy vessel, not a gift from Russia to PH
  (March 2, 2023)
• FACT CHECK: Video shows Singapore military vehicles, not donations from Japan
  (February 23, 2023)

– Lorenz Pasion/Rappler.com

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