FAA moves to fire 2 air traffic controllers who left early before LaGuardia crash

The Federal Aviation Administration is moving to fire two air traffic controllers who left their shifts early on the night of a fatal collision at New York's LaGuardia Airport in March, according to multiple reports. The agency determined the pair departed about an hour before their shift ended on March 22, 2026, leaving remaining personnel to manage the workload.

The crash occurred at approximately 11:30 p.m. that night as Air Canada Express Flight 8646, carrying 72 passengers and four crew members from Montreal, was landing. The aircraft collided with a Port Authority emergency response vehicle that was crossing the runway. The impact destroyed the plane's nose and cockpit, killing both pilots and injuring dozens of people on board. The emergency vehicle was also destroyed.

The National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report, released in April, identified a communication breakdown as a key factor. It found that a firefighter driving the rescue vehicle heard repeated commands to stop but did not initially realize they were directed at him. The report also noted that a lack of transponders on ground vehicles prevented the airport's systems from reliably detecting the...