Air Canada Jet Collides with Fire Truck at LaGuardia Airport: Pilot & Copilot Killed
NEW YORK — Two pilots died and dozens were injured late Sunday when an Air Canada Express regional jet collided with a Port Authority fire truck on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, officials said. The crash forced the closure of the airport, a major hub for domestic travel, and sparked an investigation led by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The collision occurred at approximately 11:40 p.m. As the Jazz Aviation flight, operating on behalf of Air Canada, was landing. The aircraft, a Bombardier CRJ-900, had originated from Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport and was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members. According to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the fire truck was responding to a separate incident involving a United Airlines flight that had reported “an issue with odor” when the collision occurred.
Kathryn Garcia, executive director of the Port Authority, confirmed that both pilots were killed. Forty-one people were injured in the collision, with some sustaining serious injuries. Most of the injured passengers and crew members had been treated and released from local hospitals by Monday morning, authorities said. Two Port Authority employees in the fire truck sustained injuries that were not considered life-threatening.
Audio recordings from the airport reveal a frantic attempt by an air traffic controller to halt the fire truck before the impact. “Stop, Truck 1. Stop,” the controller can be heard saying in the transmission. Shortly after, the controller diverted an incoming aircraft and, nearly 20 minutes later, appeared to blame himself, stating, “We were dealing with an emergency earlier… I messed up.”
Images from the crash site showed the nose of the Air Canada jet crushed and cables dangling from the mangled cockpit. The fire truck was found flipped onto its side. Stairways were used to evacuate passengers from the aircraft.
LaGuardia Airport was closed following the crash and is not expected to reopen until at least 2 p.m. Monday, according to the Port Authority. The closure has caused significant disruptions to air travel, with flights being diverted to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. Newark briefly halted operations Monday morning after air traffic controllers evacuated the tower due to a burning smell, the Federal Aviation Administration reported.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has dispatched a team of investigators to assist U.S. Officials with the investigation. According to Liam MacDonald, a spokesperson for the TSB, the agency has the right to participate in the investigation due to the Canadian origins of both the airline and the aircraft manufacturer, Bombardier.
Aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti cautioned against drawing premature conclusions. “It might be straightforward enough just to say, ‘Oh, the controller made a mistake.’ But there’s got to be deeper questions,” he said, emphasizing the require for a thorough investigation into all contributing factors.
The incident occurred as U.S. Airports are already experiencing travel disruptions due to the ongoing partial government shutdown and the busy spring break season. While air traffic controllers were not directly impacted by the shutdown, the closure of LaGuardia adds to the existing challenges for travelers.