“They made a mistake; it's a dangerous business”: so said Donald Trump in response to a reporter’s question about the Air Canada Express tragedy at New York’s LaGuardia airport.
The two pilots of a flight from Montreal died after their aircraft collided with a fire truck on the runway shortly after landing.
It is not clear whether the president was judging the pilots or the air traffic controller on duty when he said a mistake had been made.
To add that “it’s a dangerous business” will have shocked aviation safety professionals around the world. The sole purpose of air traffic control is to keep the skies safe. Indeed, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) mission statement is: “To provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world.”
But the latest tragedy has raised questions about overstretch in air traffic control in the US. These are the key issues based on available information 12 hours after the collision.
What do we know happened at LaGuardia?
As flight AC8646 from Montreal was approaching the New York airport, a United Airlines flight, UA2384 from New York to Chicago, rejected take off because of an unidentified smell in the aircraft. The captain then declared an emergency, saying: “Flight attendants in the back are feeling ill because of the odour. We will need to go into any available gates at this time.”
No gates were immediately available. The air traffic controller was trying to deal with this incident while the flight from Montreal was on “short finals” before landing on runway 04.
The plane was a 20-year-old CRJ900 belonging to Jazz Aviation, which flies under the Air Canada Express brand. It was carrying 72 passengers, a captain, first officer and two cabin crew.
As the aircraft touched down, a fire truck was cleared to cross the runway.
It appears the controller realised the conflict just as the two converged. He told the fire truck eight times to stop. But it was too late.
Air Canada said on Monday: “The captain and the first officer were killed in this accident. We are deeply saddened by the loss of two Jazz employees, and our deepest condolences go out to the entire Jazz community and their families.
“Air Canada cannot confirm the exact number of injuries or if there are other fatalities at this time.
“Emergency services are on site taking care of injured passengers, and some have been transported to local hospitals.”
What was happening in the control tower at the time?
It is believed a single controller was working both the approach to LaGuardia and the ground movements at the airport. In other words, he was issuing instructions to the crew of the incoming aircraft, planes moving on the ground and vehicles on the airfield.
After the collision, a recording indicates the controller told a pilot: “We were dealing with an emergency earlier. I messed up.”
The pilot responds: “No, man, you did the best you could.”
The pressure on air traffic controllers in the New York area was a topic in the AvTalk podcast from Flightradar24 in May 2025. Presenter Ian Petchenik said: “The workload on air traffic controllers for years has been near impossible.”
His co-host Jacob Rabinowitz responded: “Yeah. These air traffic controllers that work the New York airspace, they should be candidates for sainthood.”
What is the state of air traffic control in the US?
Chronically understaffed and overstretched, according to Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (Natca). Last year he told the House Subcommittee on Aviation: “These dedicated professionals continue to work short-staffed, often six days a week, ten hours a day for years at a time, using outdated equipment and in rundown facilities that are in many cases more than 60 years old and are long overdue to be modernised and/or replaced.”
Mr Daniels was giving evidence after the collision between a US Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet on final approach to Washington Reagan airport In January 2025. All 67 people in the two aircraft died.
On the night of the crash, two air traffic controllers were handling the jobs of four. The subsequent National Transportation Safety Board report highlighted shortcomings in air traffic control:
- Local controller ”a little overwhelmed” about 10-15 minutes before accident
- Traffic volume increased about 90 seconds before accident
- Controller shifting focus between airborne, ground, and transiting aircraft
- Combined positions increased controller workload, reduced situation awareness
Dorothy Robyn, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC, says: “From 2013 to 2023, the FAA hired only about two-thirds of the controllers called for by its staffing model.
“Many FAA air traffic control facilities remain chronically understaffed.”
Early in 2025, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency was accused of decimating jobs at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). But the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said: “No air traffic controllers nor any professionals who perform safety critical functions were terminated.”
What is changing at US air traffic control?
The FAA claims it has “more than 14,000” air traffic controllers. But Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told reporters in May 2025: “We’re 3,000 short on air traffic control.”
The administration says it plans to hire and train several thousand more air traffic controllers over the next several years. “The total air traffic controller workforce should grow by more than 2,000 controllers by the end of 2028,” the organisation says.
Five days before the Air Canada Express tragedy, Mr Duffy said: “The safety team at the FAA has identified the need for enhanced protocols at all airports across the National Airspace System.
“The Trump Administration will continue to act decisively to keep you and your family safe when you fly.”
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