TORONTO — Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered sharp criticism Wednesday against Air Canada’s chief executive for offering condolences exclusively in English following Sunday’s fatal aviation accident in New York, calling the approach lacking in both empathy and sound judgment.
Michael Rousseau, who leads Air Canada, will be required to appear before Parliament’s committee on official languages following his release of a four-minute online sympathy message that contained just two French phrases — “bonjour” and “merci.”
The crash at LaGuardia Airport claimed the lives of two pilots, including Antoine Forest, a French-speaking resident of Quebec.
Forest and his colleague Mackenzie Gunther perished when their Air Canada Jazz aircraft struck a fire truck during landing procedures Sunday night at LaGuardia.
The airline operates from its main offices in Montreal, Quebec, a predominantly French-speaking province. Rousseau has faced previous criticism for his limited French communication. His sympathy message was delivered entirely in English with French text displayed below.
“We proudly live in a bilingual country. There are two official languages here and Air Canada has a special responsibility whatever the situation to communicate whatever the situation in both official languages,” Carney said.
“I am extremely disappointed by the message released by the CEO of Air Canada. It shows a lack of compassion, and we will be closely following his comments before the official languages committee as well as the comments coming from the board of Air Canada.”
Language rights in Quebec have remained a sensitive issue dating back to the 1760s when British forces conquered the territory formerly known as New France. Approximately 80% of Quebec residents speak French as their primary language.
Air Canada representatives have not yet provided a response to requests for comment.
The Commissioner of Official Languages office has documented hundreds of formal complaints regarding Rousseau’s video statement.
“I don’t want to make political hay over what remains a tragedy with people still in hospital, but this isn’t the first time that he’s been told to speak French and he should know better,” said Marc Miller, the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly noted that many of those affected by the tragedy and their relatives are French speakers, describing Rousseau’s approach as lacking in understanding. “It is a question of moral leadership,” Joly said.
According to Carney, Canadian authorities remain in ongoing coordination with U.S. officials to investigate the circumstances surrounding the airport collision.
