Brother of pilot killed in LaGuardia Airport crash posts heartfelt tribute
Posted March 24, 2026 8:30 am.
Last Updated March 24, 2026 5:48 pm.
The brother of pilot Antoine Forest, who died in a crash at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, shared an emotional message on social media following the tragedy.
An Air Canada jet carrying more than 70 passengers collided with a fire truck while landing late Sunday, killing both the pilot and co-pilot and injuring several others, officials said.
Cédric Forest paid tribute to his brother in a heartfelt post:
“Have a good flight, my brother. Oh yes, we’ve heard that phrase often, but this time it will be the last. You were always coming and going, always full of new projects. You left us again, too soon to say goodbye. I love you, my brother. You can leave with your head held high.”
Jeannette Gagnier, Forest’s great-aunt, confirmed his identity. She said he saw her as a grandmother figure and had always dreamed of becoming a pilot.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Forest had worked for two airlines over the past five years.
His death has sparked a wave of sympathy in his hometown of Coteau-du-Lac, in the Montérégie region.
Since Monday afternoon, “many citizens” have been calling the Coteau-du-Lac town hall to offer their condolences to the family.
“So we redirect these people to our Facebook page” where “we made a post” and “we tell them to leave a comment,” Mayor Andrée Rousseau explained to The Canadian Press.
The population of Coteau-du-Lac is 7,800 people, so “everyone knows someone who knows the family” and his death “is an event that shakes” the community.
Messages of sympathy on social media, “hundreds and hundreds”, sometimes come from beyond the region, said the City’s communications manager, Louis-Cédrik Leduc, explaining that American citizens have also expressed their sadness to the City.
Before becoming an airline pilot, Forest was a bush pilot and, during the forest fires of the 2021 and 2022 seasons, he had worked on the operations of the Société de protection des forêts contre le feu (SOPFEU) as an air pointing pilot.
“He was a very kind, very professional colleague and appreciated by all,” wrote SOPFEU in a post where it offered “its sincerest condolences to the family and loved ones” of pilot Forest and first assistant Mackenzie Gunther, who also died in the accident.
-With files from Stéphane Blais, La Presse Canadienne
