2 air traffic controllers left work early the night of crash at LaGuardia, source says

NEW YORK CITY — Two LaGuardia Airport air traffic controllers in the control tower left work early the night an Air Canada Express flight collided with an airport fire truck on the runway, according to a source familiar with the investigation into the March 22 crash.

The two pilots of Air Canada Express Flight 8646 were killed when the jet collided with an airport fire truck just after landing. The fire truck had been crossing the taxiway to respond to an incident across the airport. The plane had 72 passengers and four crew members on board for the one-hour flight from Montreal to New York's LaGuardia, dozens of whom were injured.

The Federal Aviation Administration is now considering disciplinary action against the controllers, the source said, adding that their departure was not by "just a few minutes." Both FAA controllers are currently on leave, according to the source, and are not currently responsible for controlling air traffic.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the new details as the National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate the crash.

"The FAA is committed to holding employees accountable, and we will not compromise the safety or efficiency of the National Airspace System," the agency said in a statement.

The union that represents air traffic controllers, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, would not confirm that controllers were being disciplined, but said the union is "actively discussing these allegations with FAA leadership."

"We believe those discussions are the appropriate forum for addressing the matter," the union said in a statement.

Both NATCA and the FAA are considered parties to the NTSB investigation, which typically bars such organizations from commenting publicly on a crash until a final report is published. CNN has reached out to the NTSB for comment.

"We will not tolerate fraud, and we are taking appropriate action to hold folks accountable and prevent unlawful practices from disrupting the traveling public," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement. "But when a small percentage of individuals take advantage of the American taxpayer, unfairly add additional work to their fellow controllers, and impact the airspace – we have no choice but to act."

2 controllers worked that night

Only two controllers worked in LaGuardia's control tower that night: the local controller, who managed active runways and the airspace around the airport, and the controller-in-charge, who oversaw the safety of all air traffic operations and gave pilots departure clearance, according to the NTSB.

At about 11:35 p.m., Air Canada flight 8646 was cleared to land on LaGuardia's Runway 4.

Minutes later, controllers cleared the firefighting vehicle responding to the United plane emergency to cross Runway 4.

Seconds later, a controller seemed to reverse course, emphatically telling the rescue truck to stop, audio reveals. The plane was going more than 100 mph at the fire truck and surface detection equipment did not generate an alert.

"Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, Truck One, stop, stop, stop!" the controller instructed.

It's not clear if the fire crew heard the command – or if they misunderstood it.

Eighteen minutes after the collision, a noticeably distraught air traffic controller spoke with a Frontier Airlines pilot.

"That wasn't good to watch," the pilot said, per an audio recording.

"Yeah, I know," the controller responded. "I tried to reach out to them. We were dealing with an emergency earlier. I messed up."

"Nah, man," the pilot responded. "You did the best you could."

The agency's final report —and a finding of probable cause and contributing factors — is not likely to be published for another six months.

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