The Air Canada plane that crashed at LaGuardia airport on March 22, 2026.
Reuters
The fatal collision at LaGuardia Airport Sunday night remains under federal investigation after an Air Canada Express plane struck a Port Authority fire truck, killing both airplane pilots and temporarily halting operations at one of the country’s busiest airports.
U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at a press conference following the tragedy, flanked by city and state officials, that the emergency vehicle was responding to an unrelated incident on the airfield. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation ito the collision, with assistance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
Duffy explained that the national air traffic controller shortage has not affected LaGuardia Airport, describing it as “well-staffed.”
“This airport has a target of 37 controllers at LaGuardia,” he said. “We have 33 controllers employed and certified at LaGuardia, and we have seven who are in training. As our airports go, LaGuardia is a very well-staffed airport. We’re a couple of controllers short in total, but it is well-staffed.”
He put to rest rumors that there was only one air traffic controller in the airport’s tower, calling them “untrue.”
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy arrives to attend a press conference after an Air Canada Express jet collided with a ground vehicle at LaGuardia Airport on March 23, 2026.REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
Audio from air traffic controllers during the collision has surfaced online. In the excerpts, an air traffic controller appears to give clearance to the emergency vehicle, which was en route to an unrelated emergency, before urgently telling it to stop.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani were at the press conference and offered their condolences to the families of the two pilots who were killed.
“It is a deeply human story where two young pilots left their homes expecting to return to their families, and they will not,” Hochul said. “This is what pains everyone in the state of New York. I’ve conveyed our condolences to the Canadian government, walked the halls and gone up to Port Authority personnel, telling them how grateful we are that they put their lives out there every single day to make sure out traveling public is safe.”
Passengers on board the aircraft were warned of a possible emergency landing shortly before the crash. One flight attendant was ejected during the crash, forcing passengers to organize their own evacuation, according to the New York Times.
“I also want to commend those who were thrust into a frightening accident and reacted not only with composure but by extending a hand to the person next to them, passengers who opened the emergency door and helped one another off the plane,” Mamdani said after expressing his condolences to the pilots’ families and thanking the NYPD, FDNY and emergency management for their immediate response to the scent.
While Duffy did not blame a staff shortage for the collision, he said more money is needed to upgrade air traffic control technology.
“I’ve been asking the Congress for additional money. We need more money for air traffic control,” he said. “We are modernizing our system, but we can’t fully modernize it until Congress gives us additional money,” Duffy said.
LaGuardia reopened Monday afternoon
Per the initial investigation, all 72 passengers, along with four other crew members on the plane and two officers inside the rescue vehicle, have been accounted for. Kathryn Garcia, Port Authority executive director, said 41 passengers and crew were transported to Elmhurst and Presbyterian Hospitals immediately after the impact; 32 have since been released
At least one runway at LaGuardia reopened at around 2 p.m. on Monday with residual delays and cancellations.
The Port Authority advised travelers to check with their carrier before heading to the airport.