Air Canada Plane Crashes at LaGuardia, Revealing Terrifying Final Seconds

Moments before an Air Canada plane collided with a ground vehicle at New York's LaGuardia Airport, an air traffic controller is heard on the radio urgently telling the fire truck to stop and not cross the runway, using the word "stop" at least ten times. It was already too late. The aircraft's cockpit and forward galley sections were destroyed, resulting in the deaths of both pilots.

The two pilots killed in the collision have been identified as Antoine Forest and Mackenzie Gunther. A family member, Jeannette Gagnier, confirmed to the Toronto Star that the Coteau-du-Lac native Forest was one of the pilots killed in the crash late Sunday. Seneca Polytechnic in Toronto confirmed that Gunther, the flight's first officer, died in the crash; he graduated with a degree in aviation technology in 2023 and joined Jazz after graduation.

At 11:37 p.m., air traffic control cleared Truck 1 to cross Runway 4 at taxiway Delta while the Air Canada Express aircraft was on short final to Runway 4. The emergency vehicle had radioed the tower: "Truck 1 and company LaGuardia Tower requesting to cross 4 at Delta." The controller replied: "Truck 1 and company, cross 4 at Delta." The vehicle operator confirmed, but then seconds later, the air traffic controller was back with an urgent message: "Frontier 4195, stop there, please. Stop, stop, stop, Truck 1, stop, stop, stop. Stop Truck 1, stop. Stop Truck 1, stop."

At 11:18 p.m., United Airlines Flight 2384, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 bound for Chicago, had aborted its takeoff from LaGuardia twice after anti-ice warning lights came on and the crew noticed a foul odor in the cabin. Without an open gate for the United flight, an airport firefighting truck was dispatched to assist. That is the truck that crossed into the path of the descending Air Canada jet.

The CRJ-900 aircraft, operated by Jazz Aviation as Air Canada Flight AC8646 from Montreal, was landing at LaGuardia with 72 passengers and four crew members on board. The plane was traveling at about 100 mph when the collision occurred, law enforcement sources said. The collision crumpled the front of the passenger jet, tilting its nose upward and forcing passengers to evacuate through emergency exits.

Passenger Jack Cabot described what those aboard felt: "As we were arriving we came down really hard and then we stopped really quickly," he said. Seconds later, the situation turned violent. "And then about 2 seconds later we just had an absolute slam. Everybody was flying everywhere. I mean like the plane started veering off left and right." Passenger Rebecca Liquori described hearing a grinding sound followed by the loudest boom she had ever heard. She said she felt the pilots brake hard in those final moments. "I'm just so appreciative that they were able to save us, but I'm just so sad that they weren't able to make it home to their families," she said, her voice breaking. "I wouldn't be here had it not been for the pilot acting quickly."

One flight attendant who survived was found outside the aircraft, still strapped in her seat. She was identified as Solange Tremblay by her daughter, Sarah Lépine; Lépine said her mother suffered multiple fractures, was taken to hospital, and will undergo surgery for a broken leg. In total, 41 people were taken to hospitals, 39 from the aircraft and two Port Authority Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting officers from the truck. According to law enforcement sources, most injuries were broken bones and bruises, but one person suffered a brain bleed.

In audio captured after the collision, a controller told the stricken jet, "JAZZ 646, I see you collided with the vehicle. Just hold position. I know you can't move. Vehicles are responding to you now." Later, a Frontier pilot who had witnessed the crash from the runway said, "That wasn't good to watch." The controller replied: "Yeah, I know, I was here. I tried to reach out to my staff, and we were dealing with an emergency earlier and I messed up."

The crash marks the first deaths at LaGuardia in 34 years, Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia said Monday. The NTSB said a team of investigators recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, which will be transported to Washington for analysis. Officials had to cut a hole in the aircraft's roof to reach the recorders because its tail was on the ground.

The crash occurred during an overnight shift, when towers are typically staffed by fewer controllers. Investigators are expected to examine overtime, shift patterns, and whether fatigue may have been a factor. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy disputed claims that only one controller was in the tower at the time of the crash. At a news conference at LaGuardia, Duffy and Federal Aviation Administration administrator Bryan Bedford described the deaths of the two pilots as "an absolute tragedy."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the collision "deeply saddening" in a statement, noting that it claimed the lives of the pilot and co-pilot and injured dozens more. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada sent investigators to New York to assist alongside the U.S. NTSB. Forest's hometown of Coteau-du-Lac in southwestern Quebec paid tribute to the pilot, while his great-aunt told the Toronto Star, "He was always taking courses and flying. He never stopped.