Updated: Two Pilots Die, Scores Wounded as Plane Crashes Into Fire Truck in New York

Two pilots have been confirmed dead and several passengers injured after an Air Canada Express plane collided with a fire truck late Sunday on a runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York, United States.

The aircraft, a CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation, had arrived from Montreal as flight AC8646 when it struck a Port Authority firefighting vehicle on Runway 4 at about 11:45 p.m. local time, according to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

Providing an update on Monday, Duffy said both pilots onboard the aircraft died in the collision, while more than a dozen of the 72 passengers and four crew members sustained injuries. He added that at least two Port Authority firefighters were seriously injured.

“Our prayers this morning are with the families impacted by the ground collision at LaGuardia,” Duffy said, noting that the Federal Aviation Administration had deployed a team to support investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board.

AFP photographs from the scene showed the plane’s nose and cockpit heavily damaged, with emergency responders surrounding the wreckage. Flight tracking platform FlightRadar24 reported that the aircraft was taxiing on the runway when it collided with the fire truck as it crossed its path.

Following the incident, authorities suspended flight operations at LaGuardia Airport to allow emergency response and investigation. Duffy said the airport would remain closed until at least 2 p.m. as investigators examine the crash site.

Emergency management officials in New York warned of widespread flight cancellations, road closures, and traffic disruptions around the airport, advising travelers to seek alternative routes.

LaGuardia, located in the borough of Queens, had already been experiencing delays due to poor weather and staffing constraints linked to a federal funding lapse. The airport, one of New York’s busiest, handled over 33 million passengers in 2024 and recently underwent an $8 billion redevelopment.

The latest incident adds to a string of aviation accidents and near misses in the United States, including a January 2025 mid-air collision near Washington that claimed 67 lives.