By Ariana Zaman
It was supposed to be a routine Sunday night landing. Instead, an Air Canada flight coming in at LaGuardia Airport ended in tragedy when it struck a Port Authority fire truck on the runway, killing the pilot and copilot and sending dozens of passengers to the hospital in one of the most alarming aviation incidents New York has seen in years.
The collision happened at around 11:38 p.m. local time, according to NBC News. The aircraft, carrying 76 passengers and four crew members, was still moving at approximately 104 miles per hour when it made impact — a speed that left little room for survival for those at the front of the plane. The New York Police Department confirmed the collision, noting that the vehicle involved belonged to the Port Authority of New York, though initial police statements stopped short of confirming casualties.
A law enforcement official separately confirmed the deaths of both the pilot and copilot.
Forty-one people were taken to hospitals across the city following the crash. By Monday morning, the Port Authority said 32 of them had been discharged. The remaining patients are still receiving treatment, and their conditions have not been fully disclosed.
LaGuardia, which sits in the East Elmhurst section of Queens and serves as New York City’s second-busiest airport, was shut down immediately after the incident. Authorities announced it would remain closed at least until 2 p.m. Monday — a closure that has sent shockwaves through an already strained national travel network. The airport’s shutdown
comes at the worst possible time, layered on top of widespread flight disruptions already caused by the partial government shutdown that has left TSA understaffed at airports across the country.
What exactly brought a fire truck onto an active runway at the moment of landing remains the central unanswered question. The National Transportation Safety Board said it is actively gathering information but has not yet released further details. Federal aviation investigators have been dispatched to the scene.
The answers will come in time. But for the families of the two crew members who did not walk away from that runway Sunday night, no investigation report will fill the space left behind.
