A routine landing turned into a nightmare at LaGuardia Airport late Sunday night — leaving two pilots dead and dozens injured after a shocking runway collision that’s already raising serious questions about air traffic control.
Authorities say an Air Canada Express flight slammed into a fire-and-rescue truck as it touched down, triggering chaos on the tarmac.
The aircraft — Flight 8646, operated by Jazz Aviation — had just arrived from Montreal with 72 passengers and four crew members onboard when disaster struck. Officials confirmed both the pilot and co-pilot were killed on impact.
At least 41 people were rushed to hospitals, including passengers and two rescue workers who were inside the truck at the time of the crash. While many have since been released, several victims remain seriously injured.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen,” one shaken aviation source said, as early details point to a breakdown in communication at the worst possible moment.
According to air traffic control recordings, the rescue vehicle had been cleared to cross the runway — then abruptly told to stop. Seconds later, the plane came in.
What followed was something even veteran pilots rarely witness.
“That wasn’t good to watch,” one pilot radioed after seeing the collision unfold.
The response from the tower was chilling.
“Yeah, I know… I was here. We were dealing with another emergency earlier — and I messed up.”
That “other emergency” only added to the chaos. Just moments before the crash, a separate United Airlines flight had aborted takeoff after a warning light and reports of a strange odor inside the cabin. Flight attendants reportedly felt ill, forcing controllers to juggle multiple high-stakes situations at once.
Experts say that’s when things can spiral.
“This is extremely unusual — and very concerning,” said veteran pilot Capt. Laura Einsetler. “You don’t expect emergency vehicles to be on an active runway during a landing.”
Photos from the scene show the front of the CRJ-900 aircraft completely mangled, its nose torn apart and lifted off the ground, while its tail sat stranded on the runway.
Passengers on nearby planes described watching in horror.
“We had a clear view,” one witness said. “The front of the plane was just… gone.”
The airport was immediately shut down as the Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop, halting all incoming and outgoing flights.
Now, the National Transportation Safety Board is launching a full-scale investigation that could take more than a year. Investigators are expected to comb through cockpit recordings, radar data, and tower communications to determine exactly how a rescue truck ended up in the path of a landing jet.
At the center of it all: a single, devastating question.
How did two aircraft — one in the air, one on the ground — get cleared for the same runway at the same time?
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