Tyriq Withers, 28, and Daniel Kaluuya, 37, had to get off their Los Angeles-bound flight at Oregon’s Eugene Airport on Friday night. When a local news reporter asked about the disruption, Withers found a use for a line from a classic meme.
“I just want to thank God and the FAA for protecting us, post-blue wave as well,” Withers said, joking about the state of the FAA.
Then came: “It’s really upsetting me and my homegirl, ’cause if you can’t go to the airport, where the hell can you go?”
The reference was a viral 2016 news interview with a partygoer who said, “It’s upsetting me and my homegirl, ’cause we feel like, well, damn, if you can’t go to Bella Noche, where the hell can you go?” That news story was about a shooting outside a nightclub named Bella Noche.
Kaluuya was beside himself and doubled over in laughter.
When the reporter was able to talk to him, Daniel said he felt “grateful” and added, “Think about how many lives were probably saved because of that decision.”
The FAA had halted flights nationwide just before 4 p.m. on November 13, citing “extraordinary circumstances” and “reasons of safety.” It lifted the ground stop just before 8:30 p.m., after delays and cancellations across the country.
