{"id":681287,"date":"2026-03-25T18:12:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:12:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/681287\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T18:12:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:12:19","slug":"carney-condemns-air-canada-ceos-english-only-statement-following-crash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/681287\/","title":{"rendered":"Carney condemns Air Canada CEO\u2019s English-only statement following crash"},"content":{"rendered":"

Prime Minister Mark Carney<\/a> is criticizing Air Canada president and CEO Michael Rousseau<\/a> for making an English-only statement of condolences following the deadly Sunday night crash of one of the airline\u2019s planes at LaGuardia Airport.<\/p>\n

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One of the pilots killed in that crash was from Quebec.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very disappointed, as others are \u2014 rightly so \u2014 in this unilingual message of the CEO of Air Canada. It doesn\u2019t matter the circumstances but particularly in these circumstances: a lack of judgment and a lack of compassion,\u201d Carney told reporters on Thursday morning, speaking first in French before repeating the criticisms in English.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe live in a bilingual country. Companies like Air Canada, particularly, have a responsibility to always communicate in both official languages, regardless of the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rousseau has been summoned to appear before the House of Commons standing committee on official languages, which voted unanimously on Tuesday afternoon for Rousseau to answer why he spoke only two words in French in the video, which were \u201cbonjour\u201d and \u201cmerci.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The video had French subtitles.<\/p>\n

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Air Canada President and CEO Michael Rousseau provides a video statement on the tragic accident involving Air Canada Express AC8646: pic.twitter.com\/ZwFibpOkj2<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Air Canada (@AirCanada) March 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI will follow his comments closely and comments, which I would expect in due course, from the board of directors,\u201d Carney said.<\/p>\n

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In 2021, Rousseau\u00a0was summoned to Ottawa<\/a> after speaking only around 20 seconds of French in a 26-minute speech at the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal. The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages received more than 2,600 complaints.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tMore on Canada
\n\t\t\tMore videos\n\t\t<\/p>\n

Rousseau told reporters after his speech that he had been \u201ctoo busy to learn French\u201d and said he had \u201cno trouble living in English in Quebec for 14 years,\u201d sparking backlash across the province.<\/p>\n

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The next day, Rousseau released a statement offering an apology in both languages.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAir Canada\u2019s CEO apologizes after admitting he doesn\u2019t need to speak French\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to make it clear that in no way did I mean to show disrespect for Quebecers and Francophones across the country,\u201d Rousseau\u2019s statement read. \u201cI apologize to those who were offended by my remarks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s then-deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland wrote a letter to Air Canada\u2019s board of directors at the time, urging that \u201cits CEO improve his French and that his knowledge of the language be included in his annual performance review.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also asked that knowledge of French \u201cbecome an important criterion for securing promotions at the airline,\u201d which is subject to the Official Languages Act.<\/p>\n

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