- Laura Ingraham says a United Airlines delay forced her to miss her Fox News show.
- Jeanine Pirro filled in as host in her absence for a night covering key developments in President Trump's New York trial.
- Ingram later appeared on the show and slammed the trial's proceedings.
The top Fox News host said he was stuck on a long-delayed flight on Tuesday and called into his show to explain why he couldn't make it.
Laura Ingraham, host of the primetime show “The Ingraham Angle,” posted on X on Tuesday that her United Airlines flight from Washington, DC, to Houston had been diverted to Austin.
The trip, which normally takes about three hours, ended with them in the air for seven and a half hours, she wrote.
She added: “I was forced to miss the show on this big news night.”
Lawyers in former President Donald Trump's hush money criminal trial made closing arguments in New York on Tuesday.
Fox News and its affiliates maintain studios around the country, including an expensive home studio built during the pandemic for then-star Tucker Carlson, but even Rupert Murdoch's empire can't broadcast shows from the air.
United Airlines' X account responded to Ingram's post, apologizing and promising to look into the matter.
The airline did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment sent outside business hours.
Fox News confirmed to Mediaite that Ingraham was scheduled to host the show from Houston.
Instead, Jeanine Pirro was hastily appointed in her place.
But midway through the show, Ingram called and Pirro greeted her, saying, “Hi, Laura. I heard you're at an airport or on a plane somewhere.”
“Oh yeah, eight hours of friendly skies on United Airlines. It wasn't so friendly today, but it's okay. Everyone was kind and patient,” she said.
She apologized for her absence, saying, “Given what happened on the plane with the weather and mechanical issues, it was literally impossible for me to get to the studio on time.”
But, she said, “I've been following everything that's going on in Manhattan today and everything that continues to happen.”
Ingram then She spoke out against what she called the “weaponization of the justice system,” adding, “I thought I was upset about the flight being delayed, but this really pisses me off.”
Fox News did not immediately respond to BI's request for comment sent after hours.
Correction: May 29, 2024 — An earlier version of this article misstated the name of Fox News' founder: Rupert Murdoch, not Robert Murdoch.
