Montreal airport installs memorial to Air Canada pilots who died in LaGuardia crash

MONTREAL — Montreal’s airport authority has installed a memorial to two Air Canada pilots who died in a runway collision at LaGuardia Airport last month.

The memorial at the Jacques-de-Lesseps plane spotting park states that Antoine Forest and Mackenzie Gunther lost their lives while performing their duties and pursuing their passions.

Gunther, 24, and Forest, 30, died when their Air Canada plane collided with a fire truck crossing the runway just after landing at the New York City airport on March 22.

A preliminary National Transportation Safety Board report released this week found a surveillance system did not generate an alert for air traffic controllers because ground vehicles were not equipped with transponders.

It also found that the truck operator reported hearing the word “stop” on the radio but did not know who the transmission was intended for.

Aéroports de Montréal spokesperson Émilie Chevrette says the park where the memorial now sits was where aviation enthusiasts gathered to lay flowers and other tributes after the crash.

“ADM therefore decided to create this permanent memorial to honour these two young men who died while performing their duties and pursuing their passion,” she said Saturday in an email.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 25, 2026.

The Canadian Press