The deadly plane crash at LaGuardia Airport was an avoidable “clear error” likely the result of the Federal Aviation Administration “not doing their job,” a former inspector general of the Department of Transportation told The Post early Monday.
Mary Schiavo said there appeared to be clear confusion between the control tower and ground control when the Air Canada plane smashed into a firetruck, killing two pilots and injuring dozens.
“There are two parts here — there’s the control in the tower, also called local control, and there’s ground control. And those two air traffic control entities are supposed to coordinate with each other,” Schiavo explained.
“So clearly they either did not coordinate, or they did and were just wrong. But giving a firetruck clearance across to the runway after an aircraft has been cleared to run in this final is a clear error. There’s just no way around that,” she said.
“Who gave the final clearance for that fire truck across the runway? It should have been the tower, but clearly … someone made a very critical mistake in allowing a fire truck clearance to cross the runway when an aircraft had been given a landing clearance. That’s my take on it.”
The regional jet from Montreal, operated by Jazz Aviation, collided with the firetruck just before midnight on Sunday on Runway 4 at the Queens transit hub. The truck was responding to a separate incident on another plane.
A pilot and co-pilot were killed in the mangled front of the jet, with 41 people — including two cops on the rescue vehicle — hospitalized.
The crash remains under investigation, but Schiavo compared it to the American Airlines collision in January last year with a military helicopter over the Potomac River, which left 67 people dead.
That incident, she said, was the result of a “dereliction of duty” by the FAA.
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“I’m afraid we might see some of that same thing here,” said Schiavo, who was the DOT inspector general from 1990 to 1996.
“I think they already see this is another case of the FAA simply not doing their job, not coordinating that staffing.”
“And it’s tragic, and it’s sad. But … I have to say I’m not surprised. I’m saddened, but I’m not surprised that we have another coordination problem with air traffic control.”
Latest coverage on the deadly Air Canada crash at LaGuardia Airport
Chilling air traffic control tower audio recorded the chaotic scene Sunday night — with one controller admitting they “messed up.”
The plane, which had 72 passengers and four crew members on board, was traveling about 24 mph when it collided with the truck.
A female flight attendant miraculously survived after she was ejected through the front of the aircraft while still in her seat during the crash.
Port Authority cops helped rescue her, and she was brought to the hospital, sources told The Post.
Haunting pictures taken Monday morning show the mangled plane’s cockpit completely destroyed on the runway.