Two people were killed and several others were injured after an Air Canada Express aircraft struck a ground vehicle on the runway after landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport late on Sunday night, prompting authorities to shut down all operations at the airport till Monday afternoon.
An Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sits on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York
AFP via Getty Images
Key Takeaways
- According to the airport’s statement on X, incident took place around 11:40 p.m. EDT and involved a flight operated by Jazz Aviation on behalf of Air Canada.
- The plane collided with a “Port Authority Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting vehicle that was responding to a separate incident” on Runway 4 at LaGuardia Airport, shortly after it landed.
- Kathryn Garcia, the executive director of The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, told reporters that the two pilots of the plane have died.
- Garcia noted that two Port Authority staffers who were inside the fire truck also suffered injuries and were hospitalized, but remained in a stable condition.
- The Port Authority official also noted that 41 passengers and crew members were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment—some with serious injuries—and 32 of them have been released.
- Audio from LaGuardia Airport’s control tower suggests a controller may have been distracted at the time of the collision, the New York Times reported.
- Garcia said controllers were assisting a pilot who had requested help after several failed takeoff attempts before the Air Canada crash.
- The fire truck was on the runway because it was responding to an earlier incident with a United Airlines plane that had reported an odor in the cabin, according to the Times.
- The Port Authority said Sgt. Michael Orsillo and Officer Adrian Baez were the men in the fire truck.
- Garcia said during the LaGuardia press conference that one of the fire truck officers is expected to be released from the hospital this afternoon, while the other will remain overnight for observation.
What Do We Know About The Faa’s Ground Stop?
Shortly after midnight, the FAA issued a ground stop order at the airport. In a post on X, LaGuardia Airport said: “The airport is currently closed to facilitate the response and allow for a thorough investigation…The Port Authority Police Department is working closely with our airline partners as well as federal authorities and will provide additional updates as more details become available.” In a follow up tweet, LaGuardia authorities said the National Transportation Safety Board on side and investigating the incident but the “airport will remain closed until at least 2:00pm Monday 3/23/26 to allow for a thorough investigation.”
What Do We Know About The Plane?
According to the flight-tracking platform FlightRadar24, which first flagged the incident, the plane involved was a CRJ-900 regional jet operated flying from Montreal to New York. In a statement, Jazz Aviation said the plane involved in the incident was Air Canada Express Flight 8646. “ The preliminary passenger list indicates the aircraft was carrying 72 passengers and 4 crew members, although this is subject to confirmation,” the statement added.
Tangent
A radio transmission recording showed that an air traffic controller granted clearance to a vehicle to cross Runway 4, where the incident occurred, before saying: “Stop, Truck 1. Stop,” according to the AP report and FlightRadar24. The controller is then heard issuing “go around” orders to other incoming aircraft, forcing them to abort their landings.
Big Number
590. That is the total number of both inbound and outbound flights from LaGuardia that have been canceled as of early on Monday, according to FlightAware’s tracker. The cancelations coincide with a wider disruption in air travel across the country as the result of a partial government shutdown that has impacted Transportation Security Administration staffing numbers.
An Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sits on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York.
AFP via Getty Images
Emergency personnel respond to an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York.
AFP via Getty Images
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