A passenger aircraft and an emergency vehicle have collided on a runway at LaGuardia Airport, prompting a temporary halt to incoming flights and triggering a major emergency response.

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The incident involved an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 aircraft arriving from Montreal and a fire engine operating on the airfield. According to initial reports, the collision occurred shortly before midnight local time on runway 4.

Emergency Response and Injuries

Authorities have not yet released full details, but early reports indicate that four firefighters were critically injured. The individuals are believed to be associated with the Port Authority Police Department.

Around 100 passengers were reportedly on board the aircraft at the time of the collision. Their conditions are still being assessed, and no official casualty figures have been confirmed.

Images and videos circulating online appear to show damage to the front section of the plane, with passengers being evacuated. However, these recordings have not been independently verified.

Airport Disruption

Following the incident, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop, suspending all incoming flights to the airport. Officials cited an emergency situation but did not provide further details on the cause.

A separate notice suggested the disruption could last several hours, though the situation remains subject to change as investigations continue.

Circumstances Under Investigation

Preliminary information indicates the aircraft, a Bombardier CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation, had been taxiing toward a gate when it collided with the emergency vehicle. Reports also suggested adverse weather conditions may have been present at the time.

Authorities have not confirmed the exact sequence of events leading to the collision. An investigation is expected to examine operational procedures, weather conditions, and communication between ground and air crews.

Further updates are anticipated as officials assess the damage and determine the cause of the incident.

META: A plane and fire engine collided at LaGuardia Airport, injuring several people and forcing a temporary shutdown of incoming flights.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 23 March 2026

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Dramatic air traffic control audio reveals the moments before a jet struck a vehicle on a New York runway. As panic spread, flights were halted and emergency teams rushed in.

Stop, stop stop Truck 1,” an air traffic controller can be heard shouting moments before a passenger jet struck a ground vehicle at the busy New York airport, an incident that has led to injuries and a full-scale emergency response.

The collision at LaGuardia Airport forced authorities to halt flight operations and divert incoming aircraft.

Audio clips circulating online capture the urgency inside the control tower as the situation unfolded, with controllers scrambling to prevent movement on the runway.

https://www.indiatoday.in/amp/world/story/audio-captures-atc-panic-as-air-canada-express-aircraft-hits-ground-vehicle-at-laguardia-airport-causing-emergency-in-new-york-2885735-2026-03-23

Details of flight, landing path and aircraft involved in crash.

Canada Air Exptess Aircraft involved. Registration C-GNJZ

Pictures from crash scene

Images from Flightradar24

Sadly, I'm seeing reports that the pilot & copilot have died as a result of this crash.

https://www.thestandard.com.hk/world/article/327434/Pilot-co-pilot-killed-after-passenger-jet-hits-ground-fire-truck-at-New-Yorks-LaGuardia-airport

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/live-blog/air-canada-laguardia-collision-live-updates-rcna264682

I listened to the ATC broadcast. The Jazz Air CRJ (Operating as an Air Canada flight ) had just landed on RWY 4. The CRJ was decelerating on the RWY and then Truck 1( I believe Port Authority Fire Department) requested clearance to cross the same RWY. ATC (I believe the tower) clears the Fire Truck to cross the same RWY the CRJ was decelrating on. ADSB data incidated the CRJ was taxing at 21 knots before the impact. During the last few seconds of the ATC tape the controller could be heard yelling "Jazz Air stop, stop". By then it was too late. Truck 1 was responding to a call to assist a United Airline aircarft on another RWY. As a pilot one of the cardinal rules in any level of aviation is to not let any aircraft or ground vehicle enter an active RWY that an aircraft had landed or is about to takeoff. RIP to the Captain and First Officer.

54 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I listened to the ATC broadcast. The Jazz Air CRJ (Operating as an Air Canada flight ) had just landed on RWY 4. The CRJ was decelerating on the RWY and then Truck 1( I believe Port Authority Fire Department) requested clearance to cross the same RWY. ATC (I believe the tower) clears the Fire Truck to cross the same RWY the CRJ was decelrating on. ADSB data incidated the CRJ was taxing at 21 knots before the impact. During the last few seconds of the ATC tape the controller could be heard yelling "Jazz Air stop, stop". By then it was too late. Truck 1 was responding to a call to assist a United Airline aircarft on another RWY. As a pilot one of the cardinal rules in any level of aviation is to not let any aircraft or ground vehicle enter an active RWY that an aircraft had landed or is about to takeoff. RIP to the Captain and First Officer.

RIP to the Captain and others. One airline employee was thrown out the window by the impact.

https://nypost.com/2026/03/23/us-news/air-canada-flight-firetruck-collide-at-laguardia-reports/

Thank you President Trump and Inefficiency Secretary Musk - your safety cutbacks really suck.

LaGuardia has a long list of incidents and accidents.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_accidents_and_incidents_at_LaGuardia_Airport

God that’s heartbreaking that aircrew saw it coming no doubt just sad 😔 my condolences to their loved ones + thankfully it wasn’t worse.along with jimhuahin I have similar thoughts + I’m waiting for the blamestorming to start …..it just sucks sad 😔

These antiquated methods with radio traffic, spoken commands...

All depending on human brain and concentration.

Only after the worst accident in civil aviation (1977, Tenerife, two 747 collide, 583 deaths) they at least started to standardize radio traffic and wording.

Not much progress since then?

No signals that show clearly that a runway has been assigned to a landing / starting plane etc. Remember the disaster in Tokyo Haneda 2024 with a very lucky escape of most passengers?

Far from the AI dream world.

From what I see this could be the shortest aircrash investigation in the history of the NTSB. The controller who cleared the Port Authority Fire Truck to cross in front of the CRJ is heard 18 minutes later on tower frequency and said "I messed up". The CRJ had just landed on RWY 4 and about 1/3 down this RWY is intersection Delta. This was where the fire truck was cleared to cross directly in the path of the CRJ. The RWY was wet so aircraft need more distance to decelarate after touchdown. Both pilots probably saw what was coming right in front of the them. Aircraft are made mostly of aluminum and fire trucks are made mostly of heavy duty steel. The only saving grace was the fuel tanks were left intact and there was no explosion. The FAA and LaGuardia will be in for a slew of lawsuits and lawyers are probably lining up to take on clients. It looks like the FAA did not learn much from what happened at DCA in January 2025 when an Army Helicopter collided into a CRJ that was landing. That night one controller was in the tower. At LGA it sounded like one contoller was also on duty in the tower. Both inciddents happened at night at busy commercial airports.

54 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

clients. It looks like the FAA did not learn much from what happened at DCA in January 2025 when an Army Helicopter collided into a CRJ that was landing. That night one controller was in the tower. At LGA it sounded like one contoller was also on duty in the tower. Both inciddents happened at night at busy commercial airports.

Please don’t speculate without all the facts. Two ATC were on duty. That is normal staffing for late at night at LGA.

18 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

I listened to the ATC broadcast. The Jazz Air CRJ (Operating as an Air Canada flight ) had just landed on RWY 4. The CRJ was decelerating on the RWY and then Truck 1( I believe Port Authority Fire Department) requested clearance to cross the same RWY. ATC (I believe the tower) clears the Fire Truck to cross the same RWY the CRJ was decelrating on. ADSB data incidated the CRJ was taxing at 21 knots before the impact. During the last few seconds of the ATC tape the controller could be heard yelling "Jazz Air stop, stop". By then it was too late. Truck 1 was responding to a call to assist a United Airline aircarft on another RWY. As a pilot one of the cardinal rules in any level of aviation is to not let any aircraft or ground vehicle enter an active RWY that an aircraft had landed or is about to takeoff. RIP to the Captain and First Officer.

Jazz air was not mentioned by the controller at that time. The ATC told Engine 1 to “ Stop, stop, stop, stop . . . “ but even then it was really not clear who he was instructing to stop. He didn’t mention Engine 1 until the end of his transmission and by then it was probably too late to change the outcome.

...Many Are Asking...Upon Seeing The Damage To The Plane...How The Twin Towers Could Have Possibly Been Penetrated...(?)

37 minutes ago, Front Row said:

Please don’t speculate without all the facts. Two ATC were on duty. That is normal staffing for late at night at LGA.

Weather was not a factor. It was raining and the RWY was wet but visibility was 4 to 5 miles. The CRJ touched down without incident. The controller on the ATC tape sounded like he was hurrying his transmssions. The controller cleared the Fire Truck to cross an active RWY even though an aircraft had just landed on the approach end. I do not see any potential liability on the aircrew of the CRJ. Though all of my experience is in general aviation even I know the fire truck should not have been cleared to cross the RWY 4. The other option would have been to order the CRJ to exeute a go around to enable the fire truck to safely cross the RWY. The fire truck needed to cross RWY 4 to get to where the United Airlines aircraft reported an odor.

Watched the video and the fire truck didn't even slow down while crossing the runway intersection. Seems like there should be stop signs so you stop first before crossing where planes are landing. Had he stopped at the intersection, he likely would have been able to see the plane approaching.

1 hour ago, newnative said:

Watched the video and the fire truck didn't even slow down while crossing the runway intersection. Seems like there should be stop signs so you stop first before crossing where planes are landing. Had he stopped at the intersection, he likely would have been able to see the plane approaching.

What I said, seems not even stop lights / flashes.
And independent from the ground controller: full stop and a careful lookout as you would do on crossing any major road.

Are those american ATC employees badly trained ? badly paid ? overworked ? or just plainly careless ? And could those firemen not look at their left despite the green light given by ground trafic control ? I mean who can miss a plane that is landing ?

This sentence in the original report above is totally wrong, as most of you have figured out.

"Preliminary information indicates the aircraft, a Bombardier CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation, had been taxiing toward a gate when it collided with the emergency vehicle."

The plane was landing, and the truck was crossing that runway, unfortunately, both pilots died through no fault of their own. Sad.

13 hours ago, JimHuaHin said:

Thank you President Trump and Inefficiency Secretary Musk - your safety cutbacks really suck.

This is an irresponsible statement.