2 pilots killed in LaGuardia Airport runway collision identified

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The 2 Canadian pilots who died successful Sunday's runway collision astatine LaGuardia Airport successful New York were young, ambitious men astatine the commencement of their careers who each had pursued their yearslong imagination of flying.

Capt. Antoine Forrest and First Officer Mackenzie Gunther were operating the Air Canada pitchy that was landing astatine New York's LaGuardia Airport erstwhile it collided with a occurrence truck, officials announced connected Tuesday.

According to Air Canada, 39 of the passengers and unit members were injured erstwhile the arriving Air Canada Express level collided with an exigency conveyance connected a runway conscionable earlier midnight Sunday. There were 72 passengers and a unit of 4 connected board, arriving from Montreal.

"These were 2 young men astatine the commencement of their careers," FAA Administrator Brian Bedford told reporters Monday. "It's an implicit calamity that we're sitting present with their loss."

The collision occurred aft aerial postulation power seemingly cleared the fire-rescue conveyance to transverse the runway earlier telling it to stop, air postulation power recordings revealed. The level was traveling astatine astir 100 mph erstwhile the collision occurred, sources told CBS News.

An probe is underway into the origin of the collision. In a quality league Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board said that a runway informing strategy did not activate successful the moments earlier the collision.

Air Canada said Tuesday that six of the 39 radical who were injured stay hospitalized.

Antoine Forest

Jeannette Gagnier, the large aunt of 1 of the pilots, identified him arsenic Antoine Forest. Gagnier, who said that Forest looked to her arsenic a grandma figure, told the Associated Press that helium ever wanted to beryllium a pilot. His LinkedIn leafage showed helium had worked for 2 airlines successful the past 5 years.

Forest's Facebook leafage said that helium was from Coteau-du-Lac, a tiny metropolis successful southwestern Québec. The politician of Coteau-du-Lac, Andrée Brosseau, offered condolences to Forest's household successful a translated station connected Tuesday from French.

"Antoine was 1 of our own. In a assemblage similar ours, everyone knows idiosyncratic who knew him. His passing represents an immense nonaccomplishment for our full community," Brosseau wrote.

Antoine's brother, Cédric Forest, shared a representation of his member and him erstwhile they were kids.

"Have a harmless flight, my brother! Oh yes, we've often heard that phrase, but this clip volition beryllium the last," helium wrote connected Facebook. "You were coming and going successful the wind, ever afloat of caller projects successful mind. Gone again successful the upwind excessively soon to accidental goodbye I emotion you member you tin permission with your caput held high."

A pistillate who said she is Forest's woman and besides a young aviator shared a photograph of the mates connected her Facebook relationship connected Tuesday captioned, "the emotion of my life."

Mackenzie Gunther

Toronto assemblage Seneca Polytechnic said successful a connection connected Tuesday that Gunther graduated from its Honors Bachelor of Aviation Technology programme successful 2023.

He joined the Jazz Aviation Pathways Program, a grooming programme operated by Air Canada, instantly aft graduating. The formation that crashed connected Tuesday was a Jazz Aviation level operating connected behalf of Air Canada.

"Seneca sends our deepest condolences to Mr. Gunther's household and friends, and to his erstwhile colleagues and professors. He volition beryllium profoundly missed," the school's station said.

The schoolhouse lowered its flags to half-staff to grant Gunther connected Tuesday.

Some person said it was a occurrence that much radical weren't hurt, and astatine slightest 1 rider Clément Lelièvre credited Gunther and Forest's "incredible reflexes" with redeeming his beingness and those of others. The pilots braked highly hard conscionable arsenic the level touched down, helium said.

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