NEW YORK (TNND) — A deadly collision between an Air Canada regional jet and a fire truck occurred at LaGuardia Airport late Sunday night, resulting in two fatalities and multiple injuries.
Authorities confirmed that both the pilot and co-pilot were killed when the plane, en route from Montreal, struck the fire truck upon landing. A total of about 40 individuals were transported to hospitals, including two from the fire truck. Some suffered serious injuries but most had been released by Monday morning.
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy stated that a malfunction in the ASDE-X runway warning system contributed to the incident. The system failed to alert air traffic controllers as the fire truck lacked a transponder. “ASDE-X did not generate an alert due to the close proximity of vehicles merging and unmerging near the runway,” Homendy said.
Investigators are reviewing data from the flight data recorder and surveillance footage to establish a timeline of events and the actions of the controllers involved. The incident marks the first fatality at LaGuardia Airport in over three decades, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
As of Tuesday, the runway remains closed, and numerous flights are experiencing significant delays. Investigations into why the fire truck was on the runway during the plane’s approach are ongoing.