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Pilots flagged LaGuardia Airport safety risks months before fatal Air Canada crash: ‘Please do something’
A pilot had warned about safety issues at LaGuardia months before a crash killed two and injured over 40 people.
Pilots had flagged safety issues at LaGuardia Airport months before the Air Canada crash that killed two pilots and left 41 others hospitalized. Concerns were reported to aviation officials warning about potential risks at the busy airport.
The warning that was ignored
According to CNN, months before the deadly crash, at least one pilot had filed a formal report flagging serious safety issues at LaGuardia Airport. The concerns were submitted through the Aviation Safety Reporting System.
In the report, the pilot raised two major issues. First, they claimed air traffic controllers were not providing clear guidance on how close aircraft in the area could be to one another. Second, they warned that a runway lighting system, one they said had previously helped prevent dangerous encounters between planes on the ground, had been switched off.
“The pace of operations is building in LGA (LaGuardia). The controllers are pushing the line,” the pilot said. “On thunderstorm days, LGA is starting to feel like DCA did before the accident there,” referring to the January 2025 mid-air collision over the Potomac River in Washington, DC that killed more than 60 people.
The pilot ended their report with a direct plea to officials saying, “please do something.”
Close call before landing
The pilot also described a dangerous situation where their aircraft was just 300 feet above the ground while approaching runway 22 when another plane was given permission to take off.
“The voice accepting the takeoff clearance, most likely the First Officer, did not seem concerned, but the departing aircraft seemed to hesitate moving for a couple seconds,” the pilot said in a transcript of the Aviation Safety Reporting System document seen by The Post.
“I believe this was because the Captain of that flight was likely the pilot flying, and was in a position to see how close we were to landing. I think he or she thought twice before starting their takeoff roll.”
The pilot chose to continue landing instead of going around due to haze from Canadian wildfires and the possible presence of a helicopter nearby.
“I judged it safer to continue the approach and land around 10 seconds after the departing aircraft crossed our path, instead of suddenly going around and trusting that the helicopter was not near the departure end of 22," the pilot said.
What happened on Sunday night?
Air Canada Express Flight 8646 which was operated by Jazz Aviation was arriving from Montreal with 72 passengers and four crew members when it landed at LaGuardia late Sunday night, according to Reuters.
At the same time, a fire truck that was responding to another incident had been allowed to cross the runway. The plane had also been given permission to land.
Following the collision. more than 40 people were injured, according to Reuters. Pilot Antoine Forest and co-pilot Mackenzie Gunther were killed in the crash.
Who was Antoine Forest?
The Toronto Star first reported Antoine Forest’s identity on Monday after the crash on Sunday night. Forest was from Coteau-du-Lac, Quebec and worked as a first officer with Jazz Aviation. His Facebook profile shows he had been in this role for just over three years. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford described both pilots as “young men at the start of their careers.”
