The impact of the LaGuardia airport plane crash
Experts analyze the deadly collision between an Air Canada aircraft and a fire truck at a major New York airport
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
A tragic collision at LaGuardia Airport on Sunday night resulted in the deaths of at least two individuals when an Air Canada plane collided with a fire truck on the runway. This incident has left many questions about how such an event occurred at one of the country’s busiest airports.
The Air Canada flight had just arrived in New York from Montreal, carrying approximately 72 passengers and four crew members. Traveling at speeds exceeding 90 miles per hour, the aircraft was hit by a fire truck responding to another emergency. The impact sheared off the plane’s nose cone, and both pilots were fatally injured, as confirmed by the airline in a statement. According to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, 41 passengers and two firefighters were hospitalized, with 32 of them later released. The severity of the remaining injuries is currently unknown.
In light of the accident, several questions arise, particularly concerning air traffic control, which reportedly authorized the fire truck to enter the runway before instructing it to halt. However, experts suggest that the aircraft design may have contributed significantly to the severity of the crash.
On supporting science journalism
If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
Airplanes are built to avoid in-air collisions, withstand turbulence and bird strikes, and survive emergency landings, including on water. However, they are not designed for collisions with ground vehicles.
Michael McCormick, an associate professor in air traffic management at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, explains that aircraft are primarily designed for “airworthiness,” which includes enduring numerous takeoffs and landings. In emergencies, they can withstand the impact of landing gearless and “slide down the runway.”
Unlike cars, planes lack crash protection features like airbags, bumpers, and energy-absorbing frames, McCormick notes. “Cars are engineered for collisions and are extensively tested; aircraft are not.”
John Hansman, a professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT, adds that while plane cockpits can withstand bird strikes and underwing engines are designed to detach during water landings, planes are not meant to collide with objects. “Strengthening aircraft increases weight, leading to inefficiencies,” he explains.
Most of an airplane is made of aluminum, but the nose, housing radar equipment, is plastic. McCormick explains, “Metal would interfere with radar function,” making this area vulnerable in an accident.
Planes cannot swerve like cars. In “touch-and-go” landings, pilots must gain speed for takeoff. Hansman says, “If a vehicle suddenly appears, the plane can’t take off again or stop in time.”
LaGuardia’s runways, “notoriously short,” were extended in the 1960s to accommodate commercial jets, McCormick says. It remains uncertain if this contributed to the incident.
Following the crash, the airport was closed for a federal investigation and reopened around 2 P.M. Eastern time on Monday.
It’s Time to Stand Up for Science
If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.
I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.
If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.
In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can’t-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world’s best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.
There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.
