The US Federal Aviation Administration is taking steps to dismiss two air traffic controllers found to have left their shifts early before a fatal collision at New York’s LaGuardia Airport in March, people familiar with the matter said.
The two controllers were on duty when an Air Canada Express plane collided with a fire truck at the airport. Both had departed before the crash occurred, the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are not public.
The dismissals fall within a wider effort by the Trump administration to penalise controllers who leave shifts early or misuse sick leave. Officials have pressed the FAA to enforce staffing rules more strictly across the national air traffic control system.
Air traffic controller staffing has drawn sustained attention in the United States over the past year. A series of outages and delays exposed strains on the system, most visibly at Newark Liberty International Airport, where a major system outage drew renewed scrutiny to the agency’s operations and workforce.
The FAA has faced persistent shortages of certified controllers, a gap that has forced overtime schedules and, at times, reduced flight capacity at busy hubs. The agency has pledged to hire and train additional staff while modernising aging equipment.
The moves against the two LaGuardia controllers reflect the administration’s stance that lapses in on-duty presence carry consequences, particularly when linked to safety incidents. The FAA has not publicly detailed the disciplinary process or a timeline for the firings.
The controllers may contest the dismissals through established review procedures available to federal employees. The outcome of any such challenge would follow the agency’s internal appeals process.