Prince Harry in LAX scare: Cops chased car on runway moments before his plane took off
Prince Harry's potentially awkward reunion with his family was off to a shocking start after a car crashed through the perimeter of Los Angeles International Airport on Thursday, June 24. The incident took place when Harry was there to catch a flight to London to attend the unveiling ceremony of Princess Diana's statue.
Although the incident does not seem to have any connection with the Duke of Sussex's arrival at LAX, it did get a lot of attention from law enforcement. Around 20 police cars could be seen surrounding the car at an LAX runway. According to authorities, the car crashed through a fence after being chased by a police vehicle. The incident took place less than an hour before Prince Harry was set to take off around 6 pm PDT.
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The car chase on the grounds of the airport shut down two runways. It wasn't clear why the car crashed through the fence. As the investigation into the incident continues, LAX police told Daily Mail that the man driving the car was apprehended. There were no injuries, police said. The authorities are yet to determine whether the incident was connected to a particular flight.
Why is Prince Harry flying to London?
On what would have been his mother's 60th birthday, Prince Harry is returning to London to unveil a statue of Princess Diana. This will be the Duke of Sussex's second reunion with his British royal family this year. The first one was in April during the funeral of his grandfather Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth. This will also be the first time Harry will come face to face with the rest of his family members since the birth of his daughter, Lilibet Diana, whose name has added to the already growing list of contentions between him and The Firm.
In the midst of the ongoing rifts, Harry and his elder brother Prince William have decided to drastically scale back next week’s unveiling of the statue of Princess Diana, the Daily Mail revealed. Originally, the pair of brothers were supposed to host an elaborate ceremony on July 1 at Kensington Palace, which was Princess Diana's former home. Now, instead, they will be presiding over just a handful of guests, which would include their Spencer relatives. The significantly reduced affair was also decided due to the ongoing pandemic, which made welcoming more than 100 of their mother’s friends, former staff and supporters risky. Guests were disappointed to learn that plans for a more elaborate ceremony were rescheduled on a new date yet to be fixed for September.
Will Prince William and Harry reconcile?
Meanwhile, all eyes will be on Prince William and Harry as the ceremony might be another chance for the brothers to put their differences aside and reconcile. It has been reported that the two have been barely on speaking terms since Harry and Meghan Markle quit the royal life for California. According to Daily Mail, the pair privately told friends that they will do their best to ensure their differences do not distract from the focus of the ceremony, which is to celebrate their mother’s "positive impact".
To this end, Kate Middleton is reportedly expected to step up, playing the role of a peacemaker and help William and Harry put on a united front when they meet at the unveiling. However, it all comes down to how the brothers choose to behave during the ceremony.
Royal historian Robert Lacey told ITV's 'Good Morning Britain': "Surely when they're gathered together to honor their mother and what Diana stood for, that will be the time when we can hope for some sort of reconciliation and serious talk. Otherwise, if they just appear together in public in front of the statue and there's nothing more, I think we would rightly conclude that it's a superficial gesture."