The two pilots of an Air Canada Express jet were killed Sunday night when the jet smashed into a fire truck at LaGuardia Airport.
As noted in audio from the air traffic controller posted on social media platform X, the occupants of the truck, on their way to an unrelated emergency, had requested permission to cross the runway where the jet would land.
“Truck 1 and company, LaGuardia tower, requesting to cross Runway 4 at Delta,” a firefighter said.
Audio from Air Traffic Control when plane collided with fire truck at New York airport:
“Stop Truck 1, stop!”
“We were dealing with an emergency earlier and I messed up” pic.twitter.com/7dJcFov4gq
— BNO News (@BNONews) March 23, 2026
“Truck 1 and company, cross Runway 4 at Delta,” an air traffic controller responded
Seconds later, the controller called out, “Stop, Truck 1, stop!”
A voice on the recording later said, “That was … that wasn’t good to watch.”
NEW: New video footage captures the moment an Air Canada jet and a fire truck collided at New York’s LaGuardia Airport.
Here is what we know:
– The plane’s two pilots sadly died.
– 41 passengers and crew members were taken to the hospital.
– Audio from the air traffic tower… pic.twitter.com/KKw4xdmQXv
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 23, 2026
“Yeah, I know, I was here. I tried to reach out … and we were dealing with an emergency earlier. I messed up,” a voice that appeared to be the controller’s said.
“No, man, you did the best you could,” the other voice then responded.
In addition to the two deaths, 41 people were hospitalized, according to the New York Post. Thriry-nine of those were on the plane; two were on the truck.
Close-up photo shows the cockpit badly damaged after plane collided with fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York City. pic.twitter.com/L12mVACGEF
— AZ Intel (@AZ_Intel_) March 23, 2026
“As we were arriving, we came down really hard. We stopped really quickly, two seconds later, we had an absolute slam,” passenger Jack Cabot said, according to the New York Post.
“Everybody was flying everywhere. The plane veering off left and right. It was chaos. It didn’t feel like there was anybody controlling it,” Cabot said.
Passenger Brady Sego recalled, “We had just touched down, and maybe about 30 seconds later we all felt a jolt forward, then a loud bang, and what felt like sliding sideways down the runway.”
“Someone did say the pilot tried to reverse thrust at the last second. Honestly, they likely saved our lives. I wish I could tell their families how thankful I am,” he said. “They are heroes.”
The pilot who died after the collision on the tarmac at New York’s LaGuardia Airport was from Coteau-du-Lac Quebec. He was 30-year-old Antoine Forest. Rest in peace ❤️🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/gpOjkJuwAg
— Made In Canada (@MadelnCanada) March 23, 2026
Passenger Rebecca Liquori also praised the pilots.
“As we were descending, we hit a lot of turbulence. Then we landed very roughly. Everyone felt it. It was like the plane jolted, and you heard the pilot try to brake trying to prevent the collision,” he said.
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