Air Canada Crash: Fatigue, Shortages Blamed

0:00An air-candidate flight for Montreal collided with a fire truck while landing a LaGuardia airport in New York late Sunday night, around 11.40 pm. The crash killed both pilots and injured dozens of passengers on board, flight AC-864-6. Earlier this week, recordings revealed the fire truck, responding to another incident, requested to cross the runway. A controller initially approved it, but then urgently told the vehicle to stop. Yet the collision happened anyway. Aviation experts point to ongoing shortages plaguing air traffic control, with LaGuardia staffing just 33 certified controllers out of a needed 37. Long ships and fatigue often lead to errors, as newer staff build experience slowly on smaller fields. Officials note typical procedures require clear handoffs between approach, tower, and ground controllers to keep runways clear during landings. Here, that coordination broke down, allowing the truck too close to the active runway. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and Canada Safety Board are now digging into communications, cockpit recordings, and shift details to pinpoint the failures and push for better training and resources.

1:12Stay in form with Toronto News today, AI-powered updates. I'm Corey with the story.