Pilots reported safety concerns about LaGuardia airport to aviation officials before the Air Canada crash that left 2 dead and saw 41 hospitalized.
One pilot raised two safety concerns before warning “on thunderstorm days, LGA is starting to feel like DCA [Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport] before the accident there,” as reported by CNN.
In a report filed last summer, the pilot claimed air traffic controllers didn’t provide guidance on how close aircraft in the area can be, and warned a runway lighting system – which they said helped prevent encounters with planes on the ground – had been switched off.
They begged officials “please do something” – just months before Sunday’s crash that killed pilot Antoine Forest and co-pilot Mackenzie Gunther.
The pilot documented one encounter where air traffic controllers had given takeoff clearance to a plane on the ground when their aircraft was only 300 feet high as it made its descent toward runway 22.
“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 decided to land the plane rather than go around due to haze caused by the Canadian wildfires and a possible helicopter in the area.
“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,” they said.
The pilot voiced another safety concern about lights on the airport’s other runway, 13. They claimed this system had been disabled.
“In the past, this system provided an additional layer of safety to prevent runway incursions. Now, I never see it light up anymore when I am waiting in position on 13 while a plane lands on 22. The pace of operations is building in LGA,” they said.
“The controllers are pushing the line. On thunderstorm days, LGA is starting to feel like DCA before the accident there.”
The January 2025 crash at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport saw 67 people killed after an American Airlines plane collided with a US Army helicopter.
Other pilots reported how stop commands were issued by LaGuardia ground control just in time, averting potential disasters, according to CNN.
The Air Canada plane plowed into the fire truck Sunday night, responding to an incident on the ground, after it touched down from Montreal.
The truck had been given clearance to cross the runway, but the plane had also been given the green light to land.
Just moments before the horror unfolded, air traffic controllers frantically urged the truck to stop. The air traffic controller said he “messed up” in audio released afterward.
Forest and Gunther were killed but their actions have been hailed by survivors on board the stricken jet.
“Someone did say the pilot tried to reverse thrust at the last second. Honestly, they likely saved our lives. I wish I could tell their families how thankful I am,” passenger Brady Sego wrote on Reddit.
Long Island nurse Rebecca Liquori, 35, told local News 12 the plane’s landing was rough before the pilots hit the brakes.
“It was like the plane jolted, and you heard the pilot try to brake trying to prevent the collision.”
The plane’s front was left completely mangled following the smash – and the crash caused operations at LaGuardia to be suspended until 2 p.m. Monday.
