Anko Van der Werff will replace Michael Rousseau as Air Canada’s CEO, the airline announced Wednesday, promising its new top executive can communicate in French.
Rousseau, who has been the airline’s CEO for five years, announced his retirement in March following widespread outrage over his decision to deliver an English-only speech in the wake of a plane crash that killed two pilots, including Antoine Forest, a francophone Quebecer.
Though Rousseau had repeatedly promised to improve his French while acting as CEO, the airline said in March that his French level was not sufficient to convey the “sensitive message” required following the fatal crash.
“The selection of Mr. Van der Werff follows a comprehensive global search for the best person to lead Air Canada into the future. The search considered a number of performance criteria, including the ability to speak French,” Air Canada said in its statement.
The incoming CEO is slated to take over by the end of January 2027, Air Canada said. Van der Werff, who is Dutch, currently heads Scandinavian Airlines.
Alongside the statement, the airline released videos of its CEO pick speaking in both English and French. “I am … mindful of the importance of serving Canadians in both official languages,” Van der Werff said in the video.
According to Air Canada, Van der Werff is proficient in Dutch, English and French and has also learned Spanish, Italian and Swedish to varying degrees.
Quebec French Language Minister Jean-François Roberge congratulated Van der Werff on X.
“It goes without saying that the head of Air Canada must demonstrate proficiency in French, our official language in Quebec. That seems to be the case,” he wrote.
“That said, beyond the language spoken by the CEO, his responsibility is to ensure access to French-language services across the country. On that subject, there is still work to do,” Roberge added.
Air Canada, which was a Crown corporation before Ottawa sold it to the private sector, is subject to stricter requirements under federal bilingualism rules than other airlines.
The incoming CEO “has done a good job so far” in demonstrating his French-language skills, said John Gradek, a McGill lecturer in aviation management.
Now, “I want to see him in person. I want to see him in a press scrum with our French media. I want to see him in a parliamentary committee with the Bloc Québécois.”
In April, the federal official languages committee made plans to summon Rousseau’s replacement to Ottawa.
With Van der Werff’s hiring, Air Canada “made the right steps” toward overcoming the fallout from Rousseau’s language gaffe, Gradek said. That episode showed “a lack of judgment” on the part of the departing CEO, he said.
Van der Werff “is an individual who has the track record of making change happen,” Gradek said. “They consider him a guy who has the ability to fix things.”
First on Van der Werff’s list at Air Canada should be improving service, he said, pointing to outdated aircraft and subpar customer service.
“If there’s anything that he needs to do, it’s to really rejuvenate that customer service branch.”