In the aftermath of a tragic collision at LaGuardia Airport involving an Air Canada plane and a rescue vehicle, the air traffic controller responsible for the runway at the time continued to work even after the fatal event occurred.
The crash, which happened around 11:45 p.m. on Sunday, resulted in the deaths of two pilots. At the time, only two controllers were on duty. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chairwoman, Jennifer Homendy, disclosed that it was one of these controllers who granted the rescue truck permission to cross the runway, coinciding with the Air Canada aircraft’s landing.
“It’s known that the controller remained on duty for several minutes after the accident, which is atypical since they would normally be relieved,” Homendy stated.
She further questioned, “Was there anyone available to replace that controller? We are still investigating that aspect.”
Homendy advised caution against prematurely blaming air traffic controllers and assuming distraction was a factor, despite some reports suggesting the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was looking into this angle.
The alleged distraction involved a United Airlines flight, where an unidentified odor had reportedly affected the health of crew members.
An air-traffic controller had cleared a Port Authority Police Aircraft Rescue Fire Truck responding to the issue to cross a runway just 12 seconds before the Air Canada jet touched down.
“Stop, stop, stop, stop,” a controller demanded, according to heart-stopping audio from the tower. “Truck 1, stop, stop, stop. Stop, Truck 1. Stop.”
A controller can be heard later in the audio admitting, “I messed up.”
“We rarely, if ever, investigate a major accident where it was one failure,” Homendy said “When something goes wrong, that means many, many things went wrong.”
Latest coverage on the deadly Air Canada crash at LaGuardia Airport
The NTSB is still investigating who was in the tower at the time of the crash, which killed two pilots and injured 40 people, including a flight attendant who survived being flung 300 feet.
Having two controllers on duty in the control tower is typical for a late night shift, according to Homendy. Both were early into their shift when the crash happened.
The tower at LaGuardia had been busier than expected Sunday night because flight delays pushed the number of arrivals and departures after 10 p.m. to more than double what was scheduled.
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