Rapper Wiz Khalifa's plane diverted to Westchester
Photo credit: Getty Images | Rapper Wiz Khalifa performs at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh. (Aug. 2, 2012)
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Rapper Wiz Khalifa made an unexpected visit to Westchester on Tuesday afternoon when his plane was diverted to Westchester County Airport as a precaution after pilots experienced a problem with the landing gear.
Despite the setback and delays, the music star was in the air early Tuesday evening and on his way to a scheduled concert in West Virginia.
The rapper and members of his entourage were among the 50 passengers on a U.S. Express Airways flight to Pittsburgh. Shortly after the plane departed from LaGuardia Airport in Queens, a warning indication light came on, and as a precaution, the pilots decided to land the plane at the Westchester airport.
They told passengers that the plane would circle around Westchester County Airport several times to burn fuel before landing, "which was a little scary because we didn't quite know what that meant," said Anthony Tamborino, a member of Khalifa's "Taylor Gang" entourage who goes by the stage name Berner.
"We had superstars on the plane and we didn't know what was going on, for real," Tamborino told News12.
Khalifa was en route to Pittsburgh, his hometown, for a concert stop Tuesday night at WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, W.Va.
The rapper tweeted photos that seem to show his entourage waiting at the airport and said in another tweet "that plane juss [sic] did not wanna fly."
By late afternoon, Khalifa and his 16-member entourage had chartered a private jet to get them to the show.
"We're getting a private plane. We're out of here. That's how we rock," Tamborino said.
After two more hours of waiting -- and keeping his fans updated via Twitter -- Khalifa and his entourage were airborne by 6 p.m. The rapper tweeted photos of his friends boarding the plane and celebrating inside the cabin when the aircraft finally took off.
Khalifa, whose real name is Cameron Thomaz, is a rapper best known for the 2010 hit single "Black and Yellow." The star is on tour supporting his upcoming album "O.N.I.F.C.," which is due out Tuesday.
Khalifa got engaged to his fiancee, Amber Rose, earlier in 2012 and announced at the MTV Video Music Awards that they are expecting their first child.
