Air Canada CRJ-900 collides with fire truck at LaGuardia; airport closed
March 23, 2026
An Air Canada Express aircraft has collided with a fire truck after landing at LaGuardia Airport in New York.
The Bombardier CRJ-900, operated by Jazz Aviation, was flying into the city from Montreal late on Sunday when the incident occurred. The fire truck was responding to a seperate incident at the time of the collision.
🚨#BREAKING: At this time, at least 70 people have been injured following a collision involving a plane and a fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York. Officials at the on-site have confirmed that two individuals have been pronounced dead at the scene. pic.twitter.com/2ovwJ7wf8i
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) March 23, 2026
Both the pilot and co-pilot of the Air Canada flight are reported to have lost their lives, while two Port Authority cops who were staffing the fire truck received serious injuries, according to the New York Post.
The FAA has issued a ground stop at LaGuardia, and has closed the airport until at least 14:00 on Monday.
Landing Air Canada aircraft collides with a fire truck
Air Canada flight 8646 is a regularly scheduled evening departure from Montreal to New York. Operated by Jazz Aviation and using a CRJ-900, the service has a scheduled departure time of 19:59 each evening, landing into LaGuardia at 21:33.
Sunday’s service, operated by tail number C-GNJZ, was significantly delayed, taking off from Montreal at 22:35, two and a half hours behind schedule. It was on approach to LaGuardia at around 23:35, and cleared to land on Runway 04.
The flight touched down at 23:37, and was completing its landing roll when an emergency vehicle drove into its path. LaGuardia’s tower controller can be heard shouting, ‘TRUCK 1 stop, stop, stop’, just prior to the collision.
Audio from Air Traffic Control when plane collided with fire truck at New York airport:
— BNO News (@BNONews) March 23, 2026
"Stop Truck 1, stop!"
"We were dealing with an emergency earlier and I messed up" pic.twitter.com/7dJcFov4gq
Initial reports suggest the aircraft hit the truck at around 60 miles per hour, although this is unconfirmed.
The emergency vehicle was likely an Oshkosh Striker 1500, a specialised airport firefighting vehicle with a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of approximately 58,000 to 62,000 lbs (roughly 26,300 to 28,100 kg).
Images from the scene show the aircraft’s cockpit completely destroyed. With the weight from the front of the aircraft removed, the CRJ has tipped back on its tail, leaving the damaged front section high in the air.
🚨 PICTURED: The damage to the plane and fire engine involved in today’s incident at La Guardia pic.twitter.com/6gmvYPsgPm
— Politics US (@PolitlcsUS) March 23, 2026
The New York Post says both pilot and co-pilot have died, and that two police officers, who were in the fire truck at the time of the crash, are being treated for serious injuries. It notes that one flight attendant was catapulted out of the front of the aircraft from their seat, but managed to survive.
More than a dozen people are thought to be being treated for injuries. The FAA has closed LaGuardia until at least 14:00 on Monday, with the agency noting that it is ‘highly likely’ that the closure could be extended.
LaGuardia crash aircraft had 76 people on board
Jazz Aviation, which operates Air Canada’s regional flights, confirmed the incident at around 02:00 ET this morning.
It said that, “The preliminary passenger list indicates the aircraft was carrying 72 passengers and 4 crew members, although this is subject to confirmation.”
Here’s TRUCK 1 at LGA – LaGuardia on its side after being struck by the CRJ on runway 04. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/0mCgvUoWSM
— Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) March 23, 2026
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates LaGuardia, confirmed the incident, noting that its Chairman and Executive Director were on scene, alongside the police department.
At approximately 11:40 p.m. on Sunday, a Jazz Aviation flight operating on behalf of Air Canada was involved in an incident on Runway 4 at LaGuardia Airport in which the aircraft struck a Port Authority Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting vehicle that was responding to a separate…
— LaGuardia Airport (@LGAairport) March 23, 2026
The NTSB is sending a team to investigate the incident. It says that Chair Jennifer Homendy will serve as the on-scene spokesperson, accompanied by Member John DeLeeuw.
The NTSB is launching a go team to investigate the March 22 Jazz Aviation, Air Canada Express Flight 8646, CRJ900, airplane that collided with a fire truck on Runway 4 at LaGuardia Airport in New York NY.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) March 23, 2026
Chair Jennifer Homendy will serve as the on-scene spokesperson,…
LaGuardia fire truck was responding to a United Airlines emergency
Just before the incident, a United Airlines Boeing 737 MAX had rejected takeoff twice, firstly due to an anti-ice indication, then due to an unpleasant odour at the back of the plane, which the pilots said was making the cabin crew sick.
Having held on taxiway B, the United Airlines aircraft struggled to find an available gate. LaGuardia tower attempted to help, and tried to move the United aircraft to a better location. But the crew missed a turn, and instead were forced to hold on taxiway A for help to come to them.
The odour at the back of the aircraft was getting worse, and the pilots declared an emergency, requesting air stairs to evacuate the passengers and crew. Tower dispatched a fire truck to assist, along with a stair car.
Shortly after this, the controller gave clearance for the truck to cross runway 04 in order to respond to the United emergency. ‘TRUCK 1’ was halfway across the runway when it was struck by the landing CRJ-900.
A fire truck was trying to cross runway 04 at LGA – LaGuardia Airport this evening to get to a United Airlines flt 2384 that had 2 rejected takeoffs. The United 737 Max declared an emergency on the ground and requested fire trucks due to a strange odor that was making the flight… https://t.co/KJ7wJIgyvz pic.twitter.com/w3e6DhvUfH
— Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) March 23, 2026
The ATC audio shows just how overloaded the controllers at LaGuardia were at this point, directing multiple aircraft on the ground, handing off flights taking off and parking those that were landing.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more details are known. Please check back later for updates.
