Air Canada CEO to retire this year, board looking for next leader: Who is Michael Rousseau, why is he on the way out?

Air Canada on 30 March announced that President and CEO Michael Rousseau will retire from the role by the third quarter of this year. The board in its statement added that a comprehensive process is underway to identify next leader.

“Michael Rousseau informed the Board that he will retire … after nearly two decades of strong and dedicated leadership that has reinforced Air Canada’s place as a leader in the airline industry domestically and globally,” it said. The statement added that Rousseau will continue to lead the company and to serve on its Board until that time.

What did Michael Rousseau state?

Rousseau in the statement called it a “great honour” to work at Air Canada and as “as chair of the Star Alliance chief executive board and on the board of directors of the International Air Transport Association”.

“I look forward to supporting our company during this important transition period,” he added.

On the company's part, Vagn Sørensen, Chair of the Board of Directors thanked “Mike” for his contributions to the company and his progression from Chief Financial Officer to Deputy CEO and then to CEO and Board member.

“We are grateful for the determined leadership he has provided not only in steering our company through the 2007-2008 financial crisis, COVID and other challenges, but also in capturing opportunities such as the acquisition of Aeroplan, in restoring the solvency of our pension plans and in advancing customer centricity and employee well-being priorities,” he said.

Why is Michael Rousseau on his way out?

While the statements did not explicitly say so, Rousseau has been embroiled in controversy over his English-only condolence message following the deadly crash in New York earlier this month.

He has faced widespread criticism for failing to offer condolences in French, one of Canada's two official languages (alongside English), over the crash that killed two pilots.

Notably, Air Canada is based in French-speaking Quebec, and even Prime Minister Mark Carney commented that the English-only message showed a lack of compassion and judgment, as per an AP report. Quebec's premier and others had also called on the airline executive to resign.

Antoine Forest, one of the two pilots killed in the crash at LaGuardia Airport, was a French-speaking Quebecer. Forest and Mackenzie Gunther died when the Air Canada Jazz flight from Montreal collided with a fire truck on the runway shortly after landing, it added.

This is not the first time that Rousseau's lack of French proficiency caused criticism. He has been previously criticised for not speaking French and instead using French subtitles for videos with Canada's Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages receiving hundreds of complaints about it, as per AP.

The controversy is also tied to identity of Quebec (then called New France), which was taken over by the British in the 1760s. The region is around 80% French-speaking.

Who is Michael Rousseau?

Part of Air Canada's management team, Michael Rousseau was appointed President and CEO in February 2021. Prior to this, he served as Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer since January 2019, the official website stated.

Rousseau has added “oversight over several significant corporate initiatives and businesses, including Air Canada Rouge, to his continuing responsibilities for the airline’s overall financial strategic direction and related functions since 2007 when he became Executive VP and CFO”, the website profile said.

Before joining Air Canada, Rousseau held executive position as President at Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC), which is Canada’s largest diversified general merchandise retailer. He also held senior executive financial positions at Moore Corporation, Silcorp Limited, and the UCS Group (a division of Imasco Limited). He has been a director of several public companies and is also a member of the Board of Governors of the International Air Transport Association.

A graduate of York University, Rousseau has been a member of the Ontario Institute of Chartered Accountants since 1983. He holds the FCA and FCPA designations, conferred by CPA Ontario in recognition of his professional achievements and contributions. He was named Canada’s CFO of the Year™ for 2017 by Financial Executives International Canada, PwC Canada and Robert Half.

Who will replace Michael Rousseau?

According to the board's statement, it has “had a longstanding focus on CEO succession planning” and work on this has been underway for over two years “on a comprehensive internal development program for high potential executives”.

The company said it also commenced an external global search in January 2026 to identify potential additional candidates with the skills, and experience to lead Canada’s national airline.

In a passing nod to the language controversy, the board added that it “will consider a number of performance criteria in assessing candidates including the ability to communicate in French”.

Headquartered in Montréal, Québec, Air Canada has enlisted global organizational consulting firms Egon Zehnder and Korn Ferry for these initiatives, as per the statement.