LaGuardia to face days of disruption after deadly runway collision

LaGuardia Airport will face days of disruption after a deadly collision Sunday night between an Air Canada plane and a Port Authority vehicle, as federal investigators begin sorting through debris scattered across the runway, officials said.

National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said Monday evening that the crash scene is extensive and will take time to process. She said investigators were working to determine how the aircraft struck a rescue truck while responding to another incident.

“There is a tremendous, tremendous amount of debris,” Homendy said. “It’s pretty expansive.”

Crash kills 2 pilots, injures dozens

Air Canada Flight 8646 had been traveling from Montreal when it collided with a Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle on Sunday around 11:37 p.m., authorities said. The plane was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members.

Two pilots died in the crash and dozens of passengers and crew members were taken to local hospitals, authorities said. Officials have not yet released the pilots’ names.

Two crew members in the Port Authority vehicle were taken to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, according to officials. Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia identified them as Sgt. Michael Orsillo and Officer Adrian Baez. One was expected to be released later Monday, while the other will remain overnight for observation, she said.

Garcia also said many of those hospitalized had already been released as of Monday afternoon.

“This could have been an even broader tragedy if everyone had not responded as quickly and effectively as they did,” Garcia said at a news conference alongside other officials.

It was the first fatal crash at LaGuardia in 34 years, officials said.

Airport reopens, but investigation just beginning

LaGuardia reopened for passengers at 5:30 a.m. on Monday with its first departing flight leaving just after 2 p.m., Garcia said.

Although the crash happened late Sunday night, investigators said they have not yet had a full day on scene because some team members were delayed getting to LaGuardia, including long TSA security lines.

Some investigators were not expected to arrive until late Monday night or early Tuesday morning, officials said.

“We have long TSA lines — our air traffic control specialist, who was in line with TSA for three hours, until we called in Houston to beg to see if we could get her through, so we could get here,” Homendy said. “It’s been a really big challenge to get the entire team here and they’re still arriving as I speak.”

She said the scene posed risks to investigators, with extensive debris and hazardous materials making it difficult to move around safely. She added that a hole had to be cut in the aircraft’s roof to recover the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, which were sent to a lab in Washington, D.C.

Homendy detailed an exhaustive list of areas for investigation, including flight procedures and training, the airplane’s instruments and flight control systems and surveillance video of the crash. But it could take a while for some of these findings to be shared with the public, she warned.

“The NTSB deals in facts,” Homendy said. “We don’t speculate, we don’t take one person at their word, we verify that information carefully before we provide it.”

What investigators and officials say

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said officials would share limited information as the National Transportation Safety Board investigates the crash.

“There’s some information that we hold back that the NTSB has so that we allow them to do the investigation, and it takes months — sometimes up to a year — before we get the findings from that investigation,” Duffy said.

Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Bryan Bedford said conditions at the airport included rain, mist and reduced visibility and that a rescue crew had been deployed after a United Airlines flight experienced an aborted takeoff.

He said federal agencies, as well as the Canadian government, were at the scene.

“We are committed to a full, transparent investigation,” Bedford said. “We will support the NTSB in any way possible, and again, we look forward to being able to take concrete actions to ensure something like this will never happen again.”

Audio captures moments before crash

In an audio recording of the incident posted by LiveATC.net, a tower controller initially appears to instruct the Port Authority vehicle to cross the runway, but then quickly reverses the directive.

“Stop, stop, stop, stop, Truck One, stop, stop, stop,” the controller says in the recording.

After that, the controller begins coordinating an emergency response, according to the audio.

Travel disruptions across the region

The shutdown added to travel disruptions across the region as travelers were already facing long security lines tied to a partial federal government shutdown affecting the Transportation Security Administration.

Some TSA workers have been calling out of work, contributing to staffing shortages and delays, according to federal officials.

Federal agents, including immigration authorities, were also seen at LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday, as previously reported by Gothamist.

“Let’s acknowledge the tremendous stress, particularly in recent days, that our airline workers are under,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said at the Monday press conference. “As we come through here, know that this is an ecosystem that is not self-sustaining.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said city, state and federal agencies were coordinating as investigators worked to determine what caused the crash. He thanked first responders and passengers who helped one another evacuate the plane.

“I want New Yorkers to know that the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of this accident and that we will not rest until the conclusion of that investigation,” Mamdani said.

This is a developing story and may be updated.