Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and other government officials have criticized Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau following a collision at LaGuardia Airport that resulted in two fatalities. The crash occurred on Sunday evening when an Air Canada Jazz flight struck a fire truck on the runway. One of the two pilots killed was Antoine Forest, a French-speaking resident of Quebec.
Rousseau released a four-minute video message of condolence that was delivered entirely in English, with French subtitles. The message included only two French words: “bonjour” and “merci.” The approach drew particular scrutiny given that Air Canada is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, where French is the primary language, and because one of the deceased pilots was francophone.
Carney stated that the message demonstrated insufficient compassion and poor judgment, emphasizing Canada’s status as a bilingual nation with two official languages. He noted that Air Canada bears a special responsibility to communicate in both official languages regardless of circumstances. The Prime Minister indicated he would closely monitor Rousseau’s testimony before Parliament’s official languages committee as well as statements from the airline’s board.
Quebec Premier François Legault called for Rousseau’s resignation, pointing out that the CEO had pledged to learn French when appointed to his position in February 2021. Legault characterized the failure to speak French as disrespectful to employees and francophone customers. Federal Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet similarly called for Rousseau to step down. The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages received hundreds of complaints regarding the video. Industry Minister Mélanie Joly emphasized that many victims and their families are francophones and described the message as lacking empathy and moral leadership.
Rousseau has been summoned to testify before Parliament’s official languages committee. A spokesperson for Air Canada did not immediately provide comment on the situation. Canadian officials continue coordinating with American counterparts to investigate the circumstances of the crash.
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