Officials on Wednesday inspect the wreckage of an Air Canada Express jet at LaGuardia Airport in New York, where it had collided with a Port Authority fire truck Sunday night.Yuki Iwamura/The Associated Press
Air Canada chief executive Michael Rousseau is under heavy criticism once again from the country’s top political leaders over his ability and level of willingness to speak French, after he offered a video message of condolence solely in English to the families of the two pilots who died in a plane crash at New York’s LaGuardia Airport Sunday night.
Antoine Forest, the pilot in command of the Air Canada Express flight when it collided with a fire truck on the runway during landing, was a francophone from Coteau-du-lac, Que. His co-pilot was Mackenzie Gunther from Ontario.
On his way into the House of Commons Wednesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney took issue with the way Air Canada and its CEO handled the message of condolence. He said that Canada is a bilingual country and that Air Canada has a responsibility to communicate in both official languages, regardless of the situation.
“I’m so disappointed by the video message by Air Canada’s CEO,” Mr. Carney said. “It lacks judgement and compassion.”
Parliament’s official languages committee summoned Mr. Rousseau on Tuesday to explain himself over his decision to say only two words in French in a four-minute video expressing condolence for the death of the pilots. Those words were “bonjour” and “merci.”
Mr. Carney said he would follow Mr. Rousseau’s appearance at the committee closely “as well as comments which I expect in due course” from Air Canada’s board of directors.
Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said the CEO’s video showed “a lack of empathy and a lack of sensitivity,” given that some of the victims and their families are French-speaking.
“I think it’s a question of moral leadership,” she said, adding the CEO now needs to show he understands the message.
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Political leaders in Quebec City called for an outright change in Air Canada leadership.
Quebec Premier François Legault said Mr. Rousseau should step down, accusing him of a lack of respect after he pledged to learn French years ago.
“If he will not speak French today, it’s a lack of respect towards his employees and towards his clients,” Mr. Legault said. “I think if he does not speak French, he should resign.”
Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette said Air Canada should force Mr. Rousseau to step down, calling him a “repeat offender” for failing to respect Quebec’s official language. “This is contemptuous,” he told reporters.
Air Canada spokesperson Christophe Hennebelle said Mr. Rousseau recorded the video on Monday before departing for the crash site in New York.
“Despite his efforts, his ability to express himself in French does not allow him to convey such a sensitive message in that language as he would wish,” Mr. Hennebelle said. “We have therefore used subtitles to ensure that everyone can receive his message directly.”
He said all information about the crash has been provided in both official languages on the internet, social media and news releases. “His primary aim was to speak in person,” Mr. Hennebelle said.
Air Canada CEO pledges to learn French amid backlash in Quebec over language comments
This is at least the second time Mr. Rousseau’s French skills have come under scrutiny.
Not long after he became CEO in 2021, Mr. Rousseau made a speech to the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal that was mostly in English. Questioned by reporters after the speech, the CEO said he had managed to live in Montreal for 14 years without speaking French, and suggested he was too busy to learn the language.
He later said he was beginning to take French lessons.
His comments shocked politicians in Quebec City and Ottawa alike, and triggered more than 2,500 complaints to the office of Canada’s Commissioner of Official Languages. Justin Trudeau, who was prime minister at the time, called the situation “unacceptable.”
In the ensuing storm, Ian Edwards, CEO of engineering firm AtkinsRéalis, called off a largely English-language speech he was set to give just days later.
Attention also turned to other Quebec-based companies with perceived linguistic shortcomings, including Canadian National Railway Co., whose board lacked any French speakers for a time.
More than half of Air Canada’s 12 directors have “varying levels” of proficiency in French, according to company documents, while two are fluent.
“Six of the seven members of our Executive Committee are bilingual, and Mr. Rousseau has continued to act on his personal pledge to learn French,” according to Air Canada documents.
In comments before the federal standing committee on transport, infrastructure and communities in December, 2024, Mr. Rousseau said he continued to take French courses but that at his age, learning the language was “difficult.”
“I am serious about learning French. It’s certainly taking me longer than I thought, but I’m continuing down that road,” he said.
Conservative MP Joël Godin said that more than a year later, it’s clear little has changed in the way the CEO views his language responsibilities.
“It’s a question of principle, of values, and of intention,” Mr. Godin said, adding the CEO has once again shown his “lack of sensitivity.”
The controversy is making headlines across Quebec, with prominent columnists and pundits also voicing their outrage. In La Presse, well-known columnist Patrick Lagacé called the unilingual message “tone deaf” and said Mr. Rousseau “doesn’t want to learn French.”
Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon is using the outrage to argue in favour of Quebec’s independence.
“The federal Liberal Party will do nothing; in fact, it is actively working to marginalize French,” he said Wednesday on social media.
With files from The Canadian Press