A routine landing turned deadly in seconds at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, where an Air Canada Express jet collided with a firefighting vehicle, killing two pilots and injuring dozens.
“It was like the plane got cut in half,” said a witness who stood just 100 metres away, describing the moment chaos erupted on the runway.
The aircraft, carrying 72 passengers and four crew from Montreal, had landed safely on Sunday night before the collision occurred. At least 41 passengers and crew were taken to hospital, though most have since been discharged.
Aviation Safety Investigation Begins
Authorities have launched a full aviation safety investigation, led by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), to determine how two vehicles operating under controlled conditions collided.
Investigators are reviewing cockpit recordings, radar data, and air traffic control systems communications. Early audio reveals frantic warnings of “stop, stop, stop” moments before impact.
The firefighting vehicle had been responding to a separate incident involving another aircraft reporting an onboard odour.
Airport Infrastructure Risk and System Pressure
The crash forced the closure of one of the busiest airports in the United States, exposing vulnerabilities in airport infrastructure risk and emergency response coordination.
Passengers described hours of uncertainty, with terminals empty, flights cancelled, and families sleeping on the floor. “It’s scary… it could have been one of us,” one stranded traveller said.
The disruption worsened pressure on New York’s already strained transport network, as nearby Newark Airport briefly halted operations due to a separate incident.
Legal and Liability Questions Loom
The incident is likely to raise complex transportation liability law questions, particularly around runway coordination and emergency response protocols.
Investigators say the probe could take up to 18 months, with international cooperation from Canadian authorities already underway.
For now, the focus remains on understanding how a safe landing turned into a fatal runway disaster.
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