Air Canada CEO to retire

That caused a furor in Quebec, where the provincial legislature, known as the National Assembly, voted 92 to zero in favor of a motion calling for Rousseau’s resignation.

Many French-speaking Canadians pointed out that one of the two pilots killed in the crash, Antoine Forest, was from Quebec. Canada’s largest airline is required to provide services in English and French, the country’s two official languages.

It’s also headquartered in the Montreal region, the business and financial center of Quebec, the only Canadian province where French is the majority language.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney lambasted Rousseau last week, saying the video showed a “lack of judgment and lack of compassion.

” “We proudly live in a bilingual country and companies like Air Canada particularly have a responsibility to always communicate in both official languages, regardless of the situation,” Carney told reporters.

Rousseau apologized, saying he was “deeply saddened” that “his inability to speak French has diverted attention from the profound grief of the families and the great resilience of Air Canada’s employees.

” Air Canada said the board has been working on succession planning for more than two years, and that in January it started an external global search.

“The Board will consider a number of performance criteria in assessing candidates including the ability to communicate in French,” the airline said. Rousseau was paid C$13. 1 million ($9.