Fire Truck In Deadly LaGuardia Crash Lacked Transponder, Agency Says

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said the fire truck involved in Monday’s fatal LaGuardia plane crash was not equipped with a transponder.

The board’s chairwoman, Jennifer Homendy, said the runway warning system failed to sound an alarm moments before the Air Canada jet collided with the fire truck due to the lack of a transponder in the vehicle, the Associated Press (AP) reported.

Homendy said during a Tuesday news conference that while the NTSB had not previously recommended that ground vehicles at the airport be equipped with transponders, she believes the safety measure should be implemented.

“Air traffic controllers should know what’s before them, whether it’s on airport surface or in the airspace,” she said. “They should have that information to ensure safety.”

Two Air Canada pilots were reportedly killed and several others were injured when the jet carrying 72 passengers and four crew on board crashed into the fire truck late Sunday night at New York’s busy airport.

The control tower issued frantic, last-moment warnings to the fire truck, but investigators are not yet certain if the two people in the truck ever heard the message, the AP reported.

Homendy said NTSB investigators have not interviewed the firefighters yet or concluded if they braked or turn to avoid the crash. The data from the flight recorder still need to be reviewed, according to the outlet.

A damaged Port Authority fire truck sits near the runway after colliding with an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. A plane carrying dozens of people collided with a fire truck on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia airport, killing the pilot and co-pilot and causing “serious injuries” to others, authorities said Monday. Due to the crash late Sunday, US aviation authorities halted all flights at LaGuardia, and the port authority said the airport would stay shut until at least 2:00 pm (1800 GMT) “to allow for a thorough investigation.” (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP via Getty Images)

Audio from the controllers on duty was released to the press, but Homendy cautioned the public against jumping to conclusions about how the matter was handled.

“I would caution against pointing fingers at controllers and saying distraction was involved. This is a heavy workload environment,” she said.

The NTSB determined that one of the two controllers on duty cleared the truck to cross the runway 20 seconds before the fatal crash, the AP reported. The NTSB’s investigation uncovered that the plane was around 100 feet in the air at the time.

An Air Canada Express CRJ-900 sits on the runway after colliding with a Port Authority fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. A plane carrying dozens of people collided with a fire truck on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia airport, killing the pilot and co-pilot and causing “serious injuries” to others, authorities said Monday. Due to the crash late Sunday, US aviation authorities halted all flights at LaGuardia, and the port authority said the airport would stay shut until at least 2:00 pm (1800 GMT) “to allow for a thorough investigation.” (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP via Getty Images)

Among the several injured was a flight attendant who required surgery after she was ejected from the plane and thrown over 100 meters while strapped in her seat, according to The Guardian.

The mangled wreckage remains on the closed runway as investigators continue to sift through debris and process the scene. Authorities cut a hole in the roof of the aircraft to recover the plan’s cockpit and flight data recorders, the AP reported.

A damaged Port Authority fire truck sits near the runway after colliding with an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 at LaGuardia Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. A plane carrying dozens of people collided with a fire truck on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia airport, killing the pilot and co-pilot and causing “serious injuries” to others, authorities said Monday. Due to the crash late Sunday, US aviation authorities halted all flights at LaGuardia, and the port authority said the airport would stay shut until at least 2:00 pm (1800 GMT) “to allow for a thorough investigation.” (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP via Getty Images)

Approximately 40 people, including the two firefighters, were taken to local area hospitals for medical attention. Some sustained serious injuries as a result of the collision.(RELATED: Two Air Canada Pilots Dead, Several Injured In Plane Crash At LaGuardia Airport)

The two pilots killed in the crash have been identified as Canadians Antoine Forest and Mackenzie Gunther, according to Global News.