A regional jet collided with a fire truck on a runway at LaGuardia Airport in Queens late Sunday, killing two people and injuring dozens more. Here’s what we know.
What happened?
Around 11:40 p.m. on Sunday, an Air Canada Regional Express jet collided with a Port Authority Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting vehicle while landing at LaGuardia Airport in Queens. The vehicle was responding to a separate incident when it passed into the path of the jet, officials said.
The plane, Air Canada Express Flight 8646, was operated by Jazz Aviation, a regional carrier in Canada, and had traveled from Montreal with 72 passengers and four crew members. Images of the crash show the plane’s nose mostly sheared off from the impact of the crash, and an overturned fire rescue truck nearby.
Who were the victims?
The pilot and co-pilot of the plane were killed, and dozens of others were injured, including two officers in the truck, officials said.
Forty-one others were taken to the hospital after the crash, said Kathryn Garcia, the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns and operates LaGuardia Airport. Thirty-two of those people had since been released as of early Monday, but some others were seriously injured.
The accident is being investigated by the National Transportation and Safety Board, which had a team at LaGuardia by around 3:30 a.m., Ms. Garcia said.
How will this affect air travel?
Officials ordered a ground stop at LaGuardia early Monday as emergency vehicles swarmed the damaged jet. The Federal Aviation Administration said that LaGuardia would remain closed until at least 2 p.m., halting traffic at one of the United States’ key regional airports.
New York officials also warned that roadways around LaGuardia would most likely be affected, urging drivers to avoid the area.
One of three major airports in the New York City area, LaGuardia is a central hub for regional and domestic travel in the Northeast, seeing nearly 900 arrivals and departures per day.
More than 400 flights to and from the airport on Monday were canceled by the morning, adding to travel strife at United States airports caused by the partial government shutdown. The brunt of disruption from Sunday’s crash is likely to fall on regional and domestic travelers, as LaGuardia restricts nonstop flights to within 1,500 miles.
Ali Watkins covers international news for The Times and is based in Belfast.
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