Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome
Two B-1 bombers flew over Joint Base Andrews as President Trump greeted China's leader.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome
Photograph: Share News Japan (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Two B-1 bombers flew over Joint Base Andrews during a welcome ceremony for Chinese President Xi Jinping.
- President Trump appeared to wince as the bombers passed, while Xi Jinping was described as unfazed.
- The flyover was part of a three-day state visit that began on September 23.
- Reports varied on the reactions of both leaders to the aircraft's noise.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 2 of the 9 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
68/100
Craft
85/100
Hype
28/100
9 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
Only 1 of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Two B-1 bombers flew over Joint Base Andrews on September 23, 2026, during a welcome ceremony for Chinese President Xi Jinping. The flight was part of a three-day state visit. President Trump appeared to wince as the aircraft passed overhead. Xi Jinping was described in reports as unfazed by the flyover.
Differing accounts of leaders' reactions
Reports offered conflicting descriptions of how President Trump and Xi Jinping reacted to the B-1 bombers. Hindustan Times reported that Trump appeared to wince and bare his teeth, while Xi stood unperturbed. Times of India and India Today stated Trump visibly winced, with Xi remaining unfazed. Raw Story reported Trump made an odd facial expression and seemed to wince in pain. In contrast, Unknown (Source 6) reported that Xi Jinping was momentarily startled by the noise and turned to look at the planes, while President Trump was seen smiling. Another Unknown report (Source 9) stated Xi Jinping looked stunned as the bombers roared overhead.
What the coverage left out
None of the right-rated digests mention the specific date of the state visit, September 23, 2026, which was included in the centre and left-rated reports. The right-rated digests also do not mention the context of the visit being Xi Jinping's first in over a decade, as noted by the centre-rated report.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 24 Sept 2026, 05:00, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
1 rated outlet
- The left-rated report led with an alarm over President Trump appearing to 'wince in pain' during the military flyover, calling it a 'global embarrassment'. It noted Trump met Xi at Joint Base Andrews and that the ceremony included two B-1 bombers flying overhead. The report mentioned the White House had announced pageantry would accompany Xi's visit.
Centre
1 rated outlet
- The centre-rated report focused on President Trump being 'slammed' for appearing to wince during a flypast organised as part of Xi Jinping's state visit. It stated the video of Trump's reaction went viral on social media, with many criticising his response. The report noted Xi Jinping appeared unperturbed. It also mentioned that Trump had previously organised flybys, including one when greeting Vladimir Putin in 2025.
Right
5 rated outlets
- The right-rated reports highlighted the presence of two B-1 bombers flying over Joint Base Andrews during President Trump's welcome for Xi Jinping. One report stated the ceremony offered an image of cordiality between Washington and Beijing, occurring after an agreement to extend a trade truce. Another report mentioned the bombers thundered overhead as Trump winced, while Xi remained unfazed. A further report noted the B-1B Lancer bombers flew over the base as Trump welcomed the Chinese president for a state visit. One report described Xi Jinping as looking stunned by the bombers, while Trump smiled.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome?
- Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 14% are rated left, 15% are rated centre, 71% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 9. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome biased?
- Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome is one event reported by 9 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Trump winces during bomber flyover at Xi Jinping welcome?
- 9 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- When did Xi Jinping visit the United States?
- Xi Jinping began a three-day state visit to the United States on September 23, 2026. The visit included a welcome ceremony at Joint Base Andrews where two B-1 bombers flew overhead.
- How did Trump and Xi Jinping react to the bombers?
- Reports differ on their reactions. Some stated President Trump winced, while Xi Jinping appeared unfazed. Others reported Xi was startled or stunned, and that Trump smiled.
- What was the context of Xi Jinping's visit?
- The visit was Xi Jinping's first to the US in more than a decade. It was marked by a welcome ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, which included a flyover of two B-1 bombers.
Read it at the source
9 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
1Centre
1Right
5- Red Carpet at Andrews Joint Base, B-1 Bombers and a Expiration Date Truce: Trump Deploys Power to Xi in Washington (opens voz.us in a new tab)
- Trump winces as B1 Lancer bomber jet thunders overhead, Xi remains unfazed (opens Times of India in a new tab)
Times of India — is Times of India biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Like Putin, Xi Jinping Was Also Startled by the Roar of the Warships, and Trump Started Smiling. (opens Unknown in a new tab)
Unknown
- B-1 Bombers Roar Over President Trump And Xi At Andrews Welcome Ceremony – 100PercentFedUp.com – by Jack (opens 100% FED UP! in a new tab)
100% FED UP! — is 100% FED UP! biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump winces as B-1 bombers roar overhead, Xi beside him stays unfazed (opens India Today in a new tab)
India Today — is India Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
Not rated
2- When Chinese President Xi Jinping Arrived in the United States, the US Had Two B-1 Strategic Bombers Fly over His head... (※Video) (opens Share News Japan in a new tab)
Share News Japan — is Share News Japan biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Incredible! During the Welcoming Ceremony, Two Bombers Suddenly Roared Overhead, Leaving Xi Jinping Stunned. (opens Unknown in a new tab)
Unknown
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