A plane collided with a fire truck on a New York runway, killing the pilot and co-pilot and grounding all flights at LaGuardia airport
NEW YORK: A pilot and co-pilot were killed when their passenger plane collided with a fire truck on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia airport late Sunday. The crash forced a complete halt to all flights at the airport.
The Air Canada Express flight, operated by Jazz Aviation, struck the emergency vehicle on Runway 4 around 11:40 pm. The aircraft had just arrived from Montreal with 76 people on board, including four crew members.
US media reported that 11 passengers and two first responders were taken to hospital with injuries. The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a team to investigate the collision.
“The airport is currently closed to facilitate the response and allow for a thorough investigation,” the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey stated. US aviation authorities warned of a “high” likelihood of an extended suspension of operations.
Flight tracking data indicated the CRJ-900 aircraft was rolling down the runway when it struck the fire truck, which was reportedly responding to a separate incident. The airport had already been experiencing disruptions due to poor weather.
LaGuardia, New York’s third-busiest airport, serves over 33 million passengers annually. The incident follows other recent deadly aviation accidents in the United States, including a mid-air collision near Washington in January 2025.
