skill, good procedures, and just plain luck. And finally and most important something we called "The Big Sky Concept"
Two pilots flying Air Canada jet killed in crash at LaGuardia Airport - 22 Mar 2026
- Thread starter McG
- Start date
- Reaction score
- 6,586
- Points
- 1,260
- Reaction score
- 2,170
- Points
- 1,260
The Port Authority Police Department Fire truck involved in the LaGuardia airport crash had no transponder to trigger a warning alert - NTSBhttps://usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2026/03/24/fire-truck-laguardia-transponder-plane-crash/89304944007/
https://x.com/NYCEMSwatch/status/2036544978013327460/photo/1
https://x.com/NYCEMSwatch/status/2036544978013327460/photo/1
HavokFour
Army.ca Veteran
- Reaction score
- 2,912
- Points
- 1,040
It appears there were several failures that happened, not just an ATC issue.
www.ctvnews.ca
Fire truck in deadly LaGuardia crash lacked equipment needed to trigger warning system, NTSB says
A runway warning system failed to sound an alarm moments before an Air Canada jet and a fire truck collided while the plane was landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, federal investigators said Tuesday.
www.ctvnews.ca
- Reaction score
- 19,460
- Points
- 1,160
Can anyone believe the priorities of this bunch of our elected representatives?
Air Canada CEO summoned by Commons committee over English-only video after fatal plane crash
The Official Languages Committee voted unanimously to call Michael Rousseau to testify after his video.nationalpost.com
Is there something else the Commons language committee should be addressing on this? Seems like they’re within their arcs. Flight out of Montreal, one of the pilots was Francophone… Reasonable for that particular committee to ‘WTF?’ unilingual crisis comms. It would have taken much to do that in both official languages.Can anyone believe the priorities of this bunch of our elected representatives?
- Reaction score
- 19,460
- Points
- 1,160
- Reaction score
- 9,749
- Points
- 1,140
This is about as useful as the RSM initiating a UDI because the guys who responed to a car crash had their shirt unbuttoned. It shows a lack of seriousness, and a vindictivness that is not flattering.
This sort of BS is why many of the 75% of Canadians who aren't French have a dim view of official bilingualism.
OldSolduer
Army.ca Relic
- Reaction score
- 21,868
- Points
- 1,260
If I remember correctly the official language of international air traffic is English.
They should have placed a phone call and not grandstanded like circus clowns
So what? That is a red herring. A runway is 200 ft. wide. An accelerating truck would take what 20 seconds to cross? So with a transponder he enters the runway, the conflict detection goes off and maybe, maybe not the controller is able to abort the landing. The problem is not the equipment. The problem is that two separate bits of traffic were authorised to occupy the same control surface at the same time. full stop. The transponder helps notify when someone enters without clearance but with only a 5 or 10 second time lapse between the clearance to enter and impact having an alarm go off would have done no good at all. Canadian rules state or at least they used to state emphatically that no landing clearance could be issued unless the controller was assured that the landing surface was or would be clear of all traffic. In the U.S. it isn't unusual to hear someone cleared to land number 2 or 3 even. There is no assurance
- Reaction score
- 2,170
- Points
- 1,260
Not an SME.
Just posting an NTSB report on the topic.
Fire truck in deadly LaGuardia crash lacked equipment needed to trigger warning system, NTSB says
It appears there were several failures that happened, not just an ATC issue.
Fire truck in deadly LaGuardia crash lacked equipment needed to trigger warning system, NTSB says
A runway warning system failed to sound an alarm moments before an Air Canada jet and a fire truck collided while the plane was landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, federal investigators said Tuesday.
- Reaction score
- 5,127
- Points
- 1,160
Was that fire truck actually at a dead stop before rolling onto the runway.
Why? The airline’s CEO is talking to victims now, and leaving one of our official languages out. Again, within the arcs of that committee, it seems timely.It's within their arcs. Timing is the issue. The timing sucks.
The Commons lanaguage committee isn’t neglecting any other role they would have in this incident today that. And the 75% of Canadians you refer to probably areN’t from Quebec, where this flight originated. Again, one of the pilots, and his family, are Francophone.
The official language of international civil aviation isn’t relevant to the disaster command for a crash of a flight originating out of Montreal.
With my EAB profile I’m very far from being an official bilingualism crusader. But I can definitely see why the Common committee that deals with language issues would have issue with an English only Air Canada CEO’s statement about a fatal crash in a Quebec origin flight.
EDIT TO ADD: Had the flight been out of Winnipeg, one Anglo pilot, one Franco, and the Air Canada CEO spoke only in French, and the House language committee called that out, would anyone here be making the same complaints? Just for some perspective.
- Reaction score
- 19,460
- Points
- 1,160
- Reaction score
- 9,749
- Points
- 1,140
The Commons Committee also represents those other Canadians, and I'm guessing they aren't impressed by the timing of this stunt.
They may be technically right, but as with my example, technically right doesn't mean the optics are good.
The Air Canada CEO should have used French, but calling him before the committee within two days of the incident is crass at best.
Fair enough. Nothing turns on it.I think that on this one we'll just have to agree to disagree.
A note on the language issue, its not just hurt feelings about which language they're using. Part of the privatization of Air Canada included adherence to the official languages act even though it was now a private company rather than a crown corp. So it's not just the language committee being upset someone communicated only in English, it's that Air Canada is in violation of its obligations under the law.
- Reaction score
- 2,170
- Points
- 1,260
For reference to the NTSB investigation,
The investigation’s findings could drive renewed FAA mandates for vehicle transponders, staffing reforms, and stricter coordination protocols between air and ground operations.
Missing transponder linked to fatal crash
Federal investigators say a missing transponder on a fire truck disabled LaGuardia Airport’s runway alert system before a deadly collision with an Air Canada jet. The NTSB is probing whether technology gaps, staffing pressures, or procedural failures contributed to the crash that killed both pilots and injured passengers. The incident has raised broader concerns about airport safety systems and chronic air traffic controller shortages.
Runway alert disabled by missing transponder
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy confirmed that LaGuardia’s ASDE-X surface surveillance system failed to sound an alarm because the fire truck involved in Sunday night’s crash was not equipped with a transponder. This meant controllers could not see its position on their display, a gap the FAA had warned about months earlier when urging airports to equip vehicles with such devices. Investigators are now assessing whether an alert could have prevented the collision, which killed both Air Canada pilots and injured several passengers.The absence of a transponder and the late warnings left no margin to avert disaster.
The investigation’s findings could drive renewed FAA mandates for vehicle transponders, staffing reforms, and stricter coordination protocols between air and ground operations.
Missing transponder linked to fatal crash
Federal investigators say a missing transponder on a fire truck disabled LaGuardia Airport’s runway alert system before a deadly collision with an Air Canada jet. The NTSB is probing whether technology gaps, staffing pressures, or procedural failures contributed to the crash that killed both pilots and injured passengers. The incident has raised broader concerns about airport safety systems and chronic air traffic controller shortages.
Runway alert disabled by missing transponder
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy confirmed that LaGuardia’s ASDE-X surface surveillance system failed to sound an alarm because the fire truck involved in Sunday night’s crash was not equipped with a transponder. This meant controllers could not see its position on their display, a gap the FAA had warned about months earlier when urging airports to equip vehicles with such devices. Investigators are now assessing whether an alert could have prevented the collision, which killed both Air Canada pilots and injured several passengers.The absence of a transponder and the late warnings left no margin to avert disaster.
- Reaction score
- 39,578
- Points
- 1,210
Plot twist: Chorus Aviation, doing business as Jazz, is not owned by Air Canada, so the OL stipulations would presumably not apply.
But since the CEO of AC decided to intervene...
Similar threads
