Carson Daly Apologizes for Gay Joke Regarding Jet Blue Pilot Meltdown

Host of The Voice cracked on his radio show that, with his luck, his flight would be full of guys "going to [the gay pride parade] in San Francisco"

By Natalie Finn Mar 28, 2012 11:00 PMTags
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Carson Daly's pilot joke sure crashed and burned.

The Voice host has apologized for an ill-conceived crack he made on his morning radio show today about what went down Tuesday on Jet Blue Flight 191, when a group of passengers subdued a pilot who was having a midair meltdown.

"This morning on my radio show I attempted to make fun of myself & offended others by mistake. I sincerely apologize," Daly tweeted.

So, what was the big attempt at self-deprecation?

"Most of the people were on their way to some sort of security conference in Las Vegas," he said, referring to the passengers on the flight from New York to Las Vegas. "It was like a bunch of dudes, and well-trained dudes, thank God."

And why is that?

"With my luck," Daly continued, mimicking an in-flight announcement, "it would be like, 'This is the flight going to [the gay pride parade] in San Francisco.' I mean, that would be my colleagues."

Then, putting a stereotypical lilt in his voice, Carson said, "'Uh, we're headed down to Vegas for the floral convention.'"

Thud.

Daly also released a statement, saying,"We live in a time where gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals find courage every day to overcome adversity, stand up to bullying and find equality. I'm truly saddened that my words today suggested otherwise.

I've long been a supporter of Gay and Lesbian rights, and I'm saddened that my comments, however unintentional, offended anyone, specifically members of the LGBT community. The fact that I have hurt anyone is devastating. I'm not that guy. I'm proud to be an ally of the LGBT community and will continue to fight with them."

Meanwhile, the accused pilot, Clayton Osbon, has been suspended from duty and charged with interfering with a flight crew—a federal crime. And all of the passengers on the disrupted flight are free to go wherever they want with the refunds and ticket vouchers they received from Jet Blue in exchange for their troubles.

"The pilot of a Jet Blue flight was tackled by passengers after an in-flight tirade," tweeted Joan Rivers. "Apparently he couldn't get a blanket or pillow either."

Comedy, Carson. Learn it.