A flight attendant on the Air Canada Jazz flight that collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Sunday survived in what her daughter called a “complete miracle”, when she was ejected more than 100 metres from the plane while still strapped to her seat.
The CRJ-900 jet, operated by Jazz Aviation, collided with a fire truck as it landed, killing both the pilot and co-pilot. Nine people were sent to the hospital with injuries, including Solange Tremblay, a flight attendant.
“It’s a complete miracle. At the moment of impact, her seat was ejected more than 100 metres from the plane. They found her and she was still strapped into her seat,” her daughter Sarah Lépine told Quebec’s TVA News. “She had a guardian angel watching over her. It could have been much worse.”
Lépine said her mother suffered multiple bone fractures and was taken to the hospital for surgery to mend a broken leg.
According to her social media profile, Tremblay began working for Jazz 26 years ago as a flight attendant.
Jazz Aviation, owned by Chorus Aviation, is an independent regional airline that operates short-haul flights on behalf of Air Canada under the Air Canada Express brand.
Montreal-based Air Canada did not provide a statement on Tremblay, but several staff members confirmed details of the incident to the Guardian.
TVA identified one of the pilots as Antoine Forest, 30, of Coteau-du-Lac, a city south-west of Montreal. He joined Jazz Aviation in 2022.
“The loss of our two fellow crew members onboard Flight 8646 is a profound tragedy,” said Jason Ambrosi, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, the largest airline pilot union in the world.
“These pilots dedicated their careers to the safe transport of passengers, and we are all thinking of their families, loved ones, and colleagues at Jazz Aviation during this devastating time.”
In air traffic control recordings moments before the crash, staff could be heard on a radio transmission giving clearance to a vehicle to cross part of the runway, then trying to stop it.
“Stop, Truck 1. Stop,” the transmission says as the controller attempts to divert incoming aircraft from landing. After the collision, audio released by LiveATC appears to show air traffic controllers discussing the incident.
One controller said the impact “wasn’t good to watch”. Another responded: “Yeah, I know I was here. I tried to reach out … we were dealing with an emergency earlier. I messed up.”
“Nah, man, you did the best you could,” the other controller says in the recording.
Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, said the collision was “deeply saddening”.
