Scandinavian Airlines CEO Anko van der Werff, pictured last week in Copenhagen, Denmark, was named Air Canada's next CEO on Wednesday.Tom Little/Reuters
Air Canada AC-T has named Dutchman Anko Van der Werff as its next chief executive officer, replacing Michael Rousseau, who retires at the end of August.
Mr. Van der Werff has been CEO of Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) since 2021. He has also held senior roles at Colombia’s Avianca Group, as well as Aeroméxico, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Qatar Airways.
Mr. Rousseau announced his retirement in March after coming under fire for his inability to speak French, despite his 19 years at Montreal-based Air Canada.
Mr. Van der Werff assumes his new role by the end of January.
Air Canada said in a statement that Mr. Van der Werff was chosen in a “comprehensive global search” that included “a number of performance criteria, including the ability to communicate in French.”
“He also learned Spanish, Italian and Swedish at different levels over the course of his international career,” Air Canada said.
In separate English and French videos posted to Air Canada’s website, Mr. Van der Werff said it is an honour to lead Air Canada and continue to implement the airline’s growth strategy, improve performance and create value for customers, shareholders and employees.
“I join Air Canada with great respect for the work accomplished over recent years. The company is now firmly positioned with a clear strategy, a celebrated brand, and committed teams,” he said.
“I am also mindful of the importance of serving Canadians in both official languages,” he said.
Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau’s retirement advanced by a year after English-only video controversy
SAS, which is partly owned by Air France-KLM, said in a statement that Mr. Van der Werff will remain on the job until his departure, and the airline has begun a search for his replacement. “We respect his decision, while naturally regretting his departure,” said Kare Schultz, SAS chairman.
Mr. Rousseau, 68, ignited the language controversy over his lack of French in March after posting an English-only video expressing his sorrow over the deaths of two Air Canada Express pilots who were killed at New York’s LaGuardia Airport when their CRJ900 carrying 72 passengers collided with a fire truck on the runway. The pilots, Antoine Forest of Coteau-du-Lac, Que., and Mackenzie Gunther of Ontario, were employees of Halifax’s Jazz Aviation, under contract to Air Canada.
Mr. Rousseau drew the anger of politicians, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, who said it is “essential” that Air Canada’s next CEO be fluent in French.
In 2021, Mr. Rousseau apologized after delivering a speech in Montreal mainly in English. He said he had managed to live there for 14 years without becoming bilingual and suggested that he was too busy to learn. He later said he would take French lessons.
In the wake of the pilot video controversy, he said, “Despite many lessons over several years, unfortunately, I am still unable to express myself adequately in French. I sincerely apologize for this, but I am continuing my efforts to improve.”
Air Canada’s board announced his retirement four days later.
Mr. Van der Werff takes charge of Canada’s flag carrier after it restored profitability after the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and has rolled out an ambitious international expansion. However, its volatile share price is where it was five years ago on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and about its value in 2019.
John Gradek, who teaches airline leadership at McGill University, said the new CEO’s challenges include improving customer service and on-time performance and updating an aircraft fleet that includes aging Boeing 777s and Airbus 330s. He expects the new leader will bring in his own team of managers.
Mr. Van der Werff was not available for an interview, Air Canada said.
Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith attends a ceremony at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport, near Paris, in 2021. A former chief operating officer at Air Canada, he was views as a candidate for the top job.Rafael Yaghobzadeh/The Globe and Mail
Air Canada conducted an internal and global search for Mr. Rousseau’s replacement, hiring executive search firms Egon Zehnder and Korn Ferry.
Barry Prentice, a professor at the University of Manitoba, said the bilingual requirements of the job make it somewhat unique in the business world.
“There should be an adequate number of bilingual people who would be able to fit that role, but it certainly isn’t something that most corporations or institutions would want to use as their principal screening device,” Prof. Prentice said.
Air Canada’s internal candidates believed to have been considered for the top job included operations chief Mark Nasr, chief commercial officer Mark Galardo and finance chief John Di Bert.
Former chief operating officer Benjamin Smith was also viewed as a possible candidate. Mr. Smith is CEO of Air France-KLM, which has said it will increase its ownership of SAS this year to 60 per cent from 20 per cent.
Cameron Doerksen, a National Bank of Canada analyst, said Mr. Van der Werff’s tenure at SAS was a success, and he brings key experience to Air Canada.
Soon after Mr. Van der Werff became CEO of SAS, he steered the airline through a 15-day pilot strike and bankruptcy protection that led to the restructuring of US$2-billion in debt. The airline emerged two years later with new investors that included Air France-KLM and the Danish state. Mr. Van der Werff cut costs, renegotiated labour agreements and added new leisure routes while returning the carrier to profitability.
He also emphasized the airline’s on-time performance.
According to aviation data company Cirium, SAS planes were on time 86 per cent of the time in 2025, the third-best result in the world. Air Canada’s on-time ranking is ninth, at 73 per cent.