Emergency personnel respond to an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sitting on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. Photo / Angela Weiss, AFP
Emergency personnel respond to an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sitting on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. Photo / Angela Weiss, AFP
A plane and an official vehicle collided on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, authorities said early on Monday, forcing a halt to flights at the transport hub.
The New York Police Department told AFP an Air Canada plane “collided with a port authority vehicle”.
Separately, the fire departmentsaid it had “responded to a reported incident involving a plane and vehicle” on runway four.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop for the airport, saying there was a “high” likelihood it would be extended.
The pilot and co-pilot of the aircraft were killed in the collision, US media including CNN and NBC reported Monday.
Another 13 people, including 11 passengers and two first responders, were taken to the hospital with injuries, broadcaster ABC reported, citing officials briefed on the situation.
AFP has contacted the port authority and Air Canada for comment.
Emergency personnel respond to an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sitting on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. Photo / Angela Weiss, AFP
Flight tracking platform FlightRadar24 said an Air Canada Express plane had “collided with an airport rescue and firefighting vehicle” while landing.
The aircraft, a CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation, Air Canada’s regional partner, had departed from Montreal, the platform said.
It “was rolling down the runway when it struck” the vehicle as it crossed its path, according to FlightRadar24.
Unverified social media images showed an Air Canada aircraft with a badly damaged nose and cockpit area apparently on a runway at night, with emergency vehicles nearby.
New York’s emergency management authority warned people to “expect cancellations, road closures, traffic delays & emergency personnel” near the major transport hub in the borough of Queens.
