LaGuardia firefighter heard ‘stop’ before crash but didn’t know who it was for, report says | New York
A firefighter whose truck collided with an Air Canada jet on the runway at New York’s LaGuardia airport last month, killing both pilots, heard the air traffic controller’s “stop, stop, stop” warning but didn’t know who it was for, federal investigators said Thursday.
The National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report on the March 22 crash that the collision avoidance system to air traffic controllers did not generate an audible or visual alert and that the lights on the runway, which serve as stop lights for crossing traffic, were on until about three seconds before the crash.
The report stated that after the air traffic controller’s initial warning to stop, the fire truck’s turret operator heard the controller say “Truck 1, stop, stop, stop” and understood that the warning was for the truck to stop. The truck was already on the runway at the time as Air Canada Express Flight 8646 was landing and speeding toward it.
The report summarized an interview investigators conducted with the crew member, with the turret operator, one of two crew members on the fire truck, recalling seeing the plane’s lights on the runway when the vehicle turned left.
The Air Canada plane crashed into a fire truck during landing, killing pilots Antoine Forest and Mackenzie Gunther. Federal investigators said an air traffic controller allowed the truck to cross the runway just 12 seconds before the plane touched down.
There were more than 70 people on the flight, a CRJ900 regional jet from Montreal. Approximately 40 people, including the two people in the fire truck, were taken to hospitals. A flight attendant who was still strapped into her seat survived after being thrown onto the tarmac.
The fire truck was leading a convoy of six vehicles, including four fire trucks, a ladder truck and a police vehicle, responding to an emergency caused by a reported strong odor in the cabin of a United Airlines jet.
The tower at LaGuardia was busier than usual the night of the crash as flight delays increased the number of arrivals and departures after 10 p.m. to more than double what was planned, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Planes were landing every few minutes, and a dozen flights were arriving between 11 p.m. At the same time, the tower was coordinating an emergency response to an unusual odor that was making flight attendants feel sick.
LaGuardia is one of 35 major U.S. airports with an advanced surface surveillance system that helps eliminate dangerous runway incursions and prevent accidents. Controllers at these airports have a screen in the tower that is supposed to show the location of each plane and vehicle.
Investigators said the system, known as ASDE-X, did not work as intended at the time because the fire truck did not have a transceiver. Investigators said there were emergency vehicles behind the truck, and the close proximity of the vehicles prevented the system from triggering an alarm.
According to air traffic control broadcasts, the plane was allowed to land on runway 4 at 23.35.
About 2 minutes later and 25 seconds before the crash, the fire crew attempted to cross the same runway between the airport’s fire station and where the United Airlines jet was parked.
Five seconds later, as the Air Canada plane approached the runway just over 100 feet above the ground, an air traffic controller allowed the fire truck to cross the runway.
Then, just 9 seconds before the crash, the controller frantically told the fire crew: “Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. Truck 1. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop.” A second later, the plane’s landing gear touched down.
This was the first fatal crash at LaGuardia in 34 years.
