Two male passengers attempted the classic lift from 'Dirty Dancing' while an airline employee played 'The Time of My Life' over the PA system.
Nobody loves for their flight to be delayed and wait at the airport for hours. Most often passengers don't hesitate to express their frustration and reasonable impatience towards the situation. One flock of passengers faced something similar while boarding a delayed flight at Miami Airport, however, they found a way to make the most out of the irritating situation. Lizzie—who goes by @coachness45 on TikTok—posted the recordings of this rare sight which got more than 14 million views. The passengers were seen sitting and smiling at the beginning of the clip. A few of them can be seen volunteering and walking towards a group of passengers standing. Turns out, they kept themselves entertained by engaging in timed races around the terminal.
"My flight is delayed 2 hours. It's already 12:30 am," the overlay text explained. "And a group of guys is challenging people to see who can run a full Miami Airport lap in the shortest time," it read further. As people volunteer for the running challenge, everyone laughs, cheers and applauds. The video clip was captioned, "1min 20 secs is the fastest so far. And the man was gassed. Will keep you posted on the new contender’s time."
In a follow-up video, it was confirmed that this wasn't made up. Following the running race, two male passengers attempted the classic lift from "Dirty Dancing" while an airline employee played "The Time of My Life" over the PA system. There was also no long queue pushing waiting to talk to the airline staff. The video showed just one passenger dealing with the crew while munching on some chips.
According to Gad Allon, director of the management and technology program at the University of Pennsylvania, the push to make tickets as cheap as possible implies airlines are becoming less competitive in every other facet of air travel. This includes lowering the importance of on-time performance, which has resulted in greater flight delays. Recent holidays, such as the Fourth of July when nearly 5,000 planes were delayed the day before, are perfect examples, as per Insider.
Viewers loved the passengers' energy and even suggested there be more such arrangements like this at the airports. "Putting anxious energy somewhere healthy vs throwing it at the gate attendant who has no control over the situation! love to see it," commented @nycgoob. "This is what I’m talking about. These are my people. Can make anything entertaining. Love this. Changed the energy of the entire airport," wrote @gingermama0919.
"Love this energy. when my flight was delayed it was more of an angry mob," added @celestial.coast. "This is why I think the airport needs exercise bikes and manual treadmills - it allows people to channel their energy in a productive way," suggested @jillywd.
Cheering up frustrated passengers while their flight is delayed is not an easy task. A 10-month-old baby, however, transformed the game with her adorable attitude. The little girl remained cheerful despite a three-hour delay on a flight from Chicago, Illinois, to Orlando, Florida, in July. Julianna, who is now 11 months old, wanted to bring joy to other travelers as well. When they were eventually allowed to board, she joyfully greeted each passenger. She had flown to Chicago to visit extended family along with her parents who were super proud of her behavior.