Prince Harry jokingly refers to iconic moment between Princess Diana and A-list actor as he accepts award in Beverly Hills

On the same day that news broke that Prince Harry had ended his libel suit against the Mail on Sunday (Harry's spokesman said instead that he was "more focused on the safety of his family than on these legal proceedings"), the Duke of Sussex received an award in Beverly Hills stepped out to do so. Harry was one of four people selected for the Living Legends of Aviation, which honors "those who have made significant contributions to aviation (and aerospace)," and the event was hosted by actor John Travolta, "Aviation's official ambassador."

Harry accepted his award from Travolta on stage and gave a few remarks afterward. According to a video posted on social media, "This is nice," Harry said, eliciting laughter from the audience. Thank you, Captain John," Harry continued, then thanked Travolta and exited center stage. He was referring to the now iconic dance performed by Travolta and Princess Diana at an official White House dinner in November 1985. (According to Hello, Travolta referred to the moment with Princess Diana in his opening comments at last night's event.)

Harry continued, joking that Travolta had told "everyone here" about the moment and continued with "the meal of the moment." But look at us now, we're great." Harry said." So if we're not going to dance together, let's fly together."

Meanwhile, Travolta said in a 2016 interview that dancing with Diana was "one of the highlights of my life."

According to the Mirror, Travolta was among the existing winners and committee members selected for the He said he was one of the "biggest supporters" of Harry being honored at Friday's event. Travolta endorsed Harry not only for his military service, but also for his work promoting veterans through the Invictus Games. (In addition to both Harry and Travolta, the Hall of Fame inductees include Tom Cruise, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Morgan Freeman, Harrison Ford, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk.) [Travolta has always maintained a "strong emotional connection and affinity" with Harry from his friendship with Princess Diana, who died in 1997. Recalling how the famous dance came about, Travolta said, "Around 10 o'clock at night, [First Lady] Nancy Reagan tapped me on the shoulder and said. Would you dance with her tonight? I said, 'Of course. How are you going to dance?' And she said, 'Well, I'll pick you up around midnight, take you to her place, and then you can ask her to dance.'"

Harry spent 10 years in the British Army as a helicopter pilot, flying training missions in England, the United States, and Australia, as well as combat missions in Afghanistan. He completed an eight-month Army Pilot Course at the Army Aviation Center and was awarded his Wings of Flight in 2010. Harry spent three and a half years in the Army Air Corps in training and operational missions with an Apache unit, receiving the Best Co-Pilot Gunner Award during training and becoming fully operational as an Apache pilot in February 2012."

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"For me, flying was a transcendent experience," Harry said in his speech. 'It was a close encounter with magic, with the preservation of freedom... . and an invitation to feel free, and, interestingly, an opportunity to ground yourself without actually being grounded. Flight training spans three years and is one of life's greatest lessons. It caused an enormous amount of emotion."

For the event, Harry wore a classic black tuxedo. The Mirror reported that Meghan Markle remained at home in Montecito because one of her children unexpectedly became "ill" and he attended the event alone. (It is not known which of the two children was sick, and no other information was given.) She was scheduled to attend with her husband. This was Harry's first public appearance since news of the health concerns of his father, King Charles, and sister-in-law, the Princess of Wales.

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