Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau to retire at the end of this year after language dispute
Air Canada CEO Michael Russo will retire by the end of the third quarter after nearly two decades with the Canadian carrier, the airline said Monday, a week after the executive made headlines for issuing an English-only condolence following the AC8646 crash.
Faced criticism for English-only message after deaths of two pilots, one francophone
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Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau will retire at the end of the third quarter after nearly two decades with the airline, the company said Monday, a week after he made headlines by releasing the news. English only message of condolence After the crash of Flight 8646 in New York.
The plane took off from Montreal and collided with a fire truck while landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, killing the two pilots – First Officer McKenzie Gunther and Captain Antoine Forest – and injuring dozens of others.
Russo expressed condolences with the families of the victims in a video published last Monday, but was immediately condemned for delivering the subtitled message almost entirely in English (except for beginning with “Bonjour” and ending with “Mercy”).
One of the pilots, Forrest, was a francophone Québécois from Coteau-du-Lac, Que.
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