Harry speaks at LA awards as Prince William attends Pope's funeral

Telegraph

26-04-2025

The Duke of Sussex was a guest speaker alongside Hollywood stars at an awards show hours before his brother attended the Pope's funeral on behalf of the King.
Prince Harry appeared at the Living Legend of Aviation Awards in Los Angeles on Friday night alongside John Travolta, who has become a good friend since the Prince was himself inducted as a Living Legend at last year's ceremony.
The 40-year-old Duke, who was not accompanied by wife Meghan, took to the stage at the Beverly Hilton with Travolta and fellow actors Kurt Russell and Morgan Freeman to pay tribute to the courage of the aviators who helped fight January's devastating wildfires in California.
'First responders rise to the challenge'
Harry told the audience: 'What I've seen and what the world sees is that first responders rise to that challenge every single time, and yet we rarely get the chance to thank them.
'This community, bound and energised by service to others, shows up for us wherever we are and whenever they're needed. They put their lives on hold for as long as we need them.
'Tonight we celebrate the aviation legends, the kind forged in smoke, shaped by teamwork and defined by the courage to fly into danger when others are told to flee.
'This community doesn't ask for attention or recognition. They don't ask for praise.
'But tonight we're going to give it to them regardless, because in my experience, it's the people who don't expect it or ask for it that need and appreciate it the most.'
Greg Herrick, a vintage aircraft collector who also holds the title of Living Legend, said he felt Harry and Travolta, 71, who famously danced with Diana, Princess of Wales, at the White House in 1985, had bonded 'like brothers'.
Russell, 74, described Harry as 'always the nice fellow' and said the Duke felt honoured to be part of the 'elite aviator community'.
The veteran actor said: 'Pilots to me are a community that is indescribably different and unique from anything I've ever been a part of. This is the best night of the year. I love the people that are in that room – everything to do with aviation.'
Another guest said: 'John [Travolta] was beyond excited that Harry did not just attend this event, but also paid the love forward from winning last year. His comments were a major moving moment of the evening.
'John has been in communication with Harry since last year and they mutually decided it was right to pay tribute to the crews.
'We all know it's a huge deal for Harry to attend a Hollywood event, because he's very much shied away from these types of events since he moved to California five years ago.
'But John's passion has fired up something in Harry to continue his love for flying long after his Army days in helicopters.'
Astronauts honoured at ceremony
At the ceremony Travolta, the Living Legends organisation's 'official ambassador of aviation', inducted and honoured major names in aviation including Christopher Cassidy, a former NASA astronaut who logged three spaceflights, 10 spacewalks, and a total of 377 days in space.
Others honoured were Robert 'Hoot' Gibson, a former astronaut and Navy fighter pilot, and Tom Costello, NBC's Emmy award-winning aviation and space correspondent.
The crew of the Polaris Dawn, whose five-day space mission last year included the first commercial spacewalk ever, received the inaugural Dr. Buzz Aldrin Space Advancement Award.