LaGuardia Crash Kills Two Pilots as Air Canada Jet Hits Fire Truck
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Two Air Canada pilots killed when their jet hit fire truck on LaGuardia runway at 100 mph during landing Sunday night.
- Air traffic controller issued repeated stop warnings but truck was already cleared to cross runway; controller later said "I messed up."
- Airport closed until Monday afternoon; 600+ flights cancelled. NTSB investigating; LaGuardia operating with staffing below target levels.
Fatal Collision Shuts Down Major Airport
A devastating runway collision at New York's LaGuardia Airport late Sunday night claimed the lives of two Air Canada pilots and injured dozens of passengers when their regional jet struck a Port Authority fire truck during landing. The Air Canada Express Flight 8646, carrying 72 passengers and four crew members from Montreal, collided with the emergency vehicle around 11:30 p.m., killing both the pilot and co-pilot .
Images showed the mangled front of the plane lifted into the air and its tail on the tarmac , while one flight attendant was ejected more than 300 feet from the aircraft, still strapped to her seat . Forty-one passengers and crew members suffered injuries, with nine considered significant , though thirty-two of the injured were treated and released from hospitals .
LaGuardia was closed after the accident until 2 p.m. Monday, reopening with a single runway . Over 600 flights into or out of LaGuardia were cancelled on Monday , creating widespread travel disruptions across the region.
Air Traffic Control Audio Reveals Critical Moments
Air traffic control recordings revealed that controllers had cleared the fire-rescue vehicle to cross the runway before telling it to stop . The emergency truck was responding to a separate "odor" incident involving a United Airlines plane when the collision occurred.
An air traffic controller urgently told the fire truck to stop at least ten times , with audio capturing the desperate warnings: "Stop, stop, stop, Truck 1, stop, stop, stop. Stop Truck 1, stop. Stop Truck 1, stop" . Roughly 20 minutes after the collision, the same controller said, "I messed up" , highlighting the human element in this tragic accident.
The plane was traveling at approximately 100 mph when the collision occurred , demonstrating the devastating impact that occurred despite the controller's frantic attempts to prevent it.
Investigation Underway as Airport Operations Resume
Federal investigators have retrieved the so-called black boxes containing flight data and cockpit voice recorders , while the National Transportation Safety Board launched a go team to investigate . One of the deceased pilots has been identified as Antoine Forest, a Coteau-du-Lac native whose family confirmed his death .
Former FAA air traffic controller Dave Riley noted that the number of controllers and their fatigue levels could be factors in the investigation, questioning how many people were actually in the tower cab during the incident . Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated that LaGuardia has 33 certified controllers against a goal of 37, with seven more in training .
This marks LaGuardia's first fatal crash since 1992, raising questions about runway safety protocols at one of the nation's busiest airports. As investigators piece together the sequence of events, the aviation industry will likely scrutinize communication procedures between air traffic control and ground vehicles to prevent similar tragedies in the future.