Two people have died and at least two others were injured on the night of Sunday, March 22, after an Air Canada plane collided with a fire truck on a runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York (Queens), according to CNN citing a police source. The deceased are the airline's pilot and co-pilot, and the two injured were in the fire truck. The accident occurred at around 23:40 local time when a Jazz Aviation flight operating an Air Canada flight struck a fire truck that was responding to another incident at the airport, according to airport sources. Authorities activated emergency protocols and ordered the airport to be closed to facilitate the investigation. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a flight suspension order at LaGuardia following the incident and is expected to remain closed until Monday afternoon. Jazz Aviation confirmed in a statement issued early Monday the incident related to Air Canada flight 8646 from Montreal. The aircraft, a CRJ-900, was carrying 72 passengers and 4 crew members, according to a preliminary list provided by the airline. According to the Flightradar24 website—a global real-time flight tracking service—the plane was traveling at about 210 kilometers per hour—130 miles per hour—moments before the impact. Images of the collision show severe damage to the front of the plane. Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced the dispatch of an investigative team to the scene. According to CNN, the accident comes amid tensions at U.S. airports due to a lack of funding from the Department of Homeland Security, which has affected security personnel and caused delays at various airports across the country.
