By Gareth Vipers and Austin Ramzy
New York City's LaGuardia Airport was closed Monday after a passenger plane collided with an emergency vehicle on the runway, killing two pilots, authorities said.
An Air Canada Express plane arriving from Montreal collided with a firefighting vehicle late Sunday, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Federal Aviation Administration implemented a full ground stop at the airport until Monday afternoon.
The two pilots of the Air Canada Express plane were killed in the crash, a spokesperson for the Port Authority said.
A further 41 people, including passengers, crew, and two Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting officers, were taken to the hospital, they added.
The incident happened at around 11:40 p.m. ET Sunday when a Jazz Aviation flight operating on behalf of Air Canada struck a Port Authority firefighting vehicle that was responding to a separate incident. Jazz Aviation said the preliminary passenger list indicated the aircraft was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members.
The FAA said LaGuardia would remain closed until at least 2 p.m. ET Monday. More than 500 flights scheduled to arrive or depart LaGuardia Airport have been canceled, according to data from the flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Footage from the scene showed the front end of the plane sheared off roughly from the spot of the plane's front doors.
Flight AC8646, a Bombardier CRJ900 jet, was arriving from Montreal and rolling down Runway 4 when it struck the airport firefighting vehicle. The plane's last recorded ground speed was 21 knots, or about 24 miles an hour, according to tracking platform Flightradar24.
Jazz Aviation is the primary operator of Air Canada Express flights and the largest regional airline in Canada.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is responsible for investigating plane accidents in the U.S., said it was sending a team to the scene. Regulators have been worried for years about runway collisions in the U.S. because of a string of near misses, such as one involving an emergency vehicle crossing a runway in Baltimore.
An increase in near miss incidents at U.S. airports in recent years has raised concerns among aviation safety experts and industry officials, prompting investigations into their causes and how to prevent them. Explanations being discussed include shortages in air-traffic control staffing, less experience among newer pilots and the need for improved technology.
The FAA oversees roughly 45,000 flights each day across the country. At busy hubs, this can mean a takeoff or landing about every 20 seconds during peak periods.
When there aren't enough air-traffic controllers on duty, delays can build up, heightening the risk of miscommunication between pilots and controllers. There was no indication that the incident at LaGuardia was due to staffing shortages.
Write to Gareth Vipers at gareth.vipers@wsj.com and Austin Ramzy at austin.ramzy@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 23, 2026 06:05 ET (10:05 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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