Michael Rousseau Biography: The Air Canada CEO Who Built an Airlines Future and Sparked a National Debate
There are executives who run companies quietly, stay out of the headlines and retire with a plaque on the wall. Michael Rousseau is not that kind of executive. He spent two decades turning Air Canada from a financially troubled airline into one of the most profitable carriers in the Western Hemisphere. He was named Canada’s CFO of the Year. He rose to become CEO of the country’s flagship airline.. Then not once but multiple times he became the center of a national controversy that touched the very identity of Canada itself. Whatever you think of the man, his story is anything but boring.
Who Is Michael Rousseau?
- Full name: Michael S. Rousseau
- Place of birth: Cornwall, Ontario, Canada
- Nationality: Canadian
- Education: York University’s Schulich School of Business (Bachelor of Business Administration 1981)
- Professional designation: Chartered Accountant (CA) since 1983; holds FCA and FCPA designations from CPA Ontario
- role: President and Chief Executive Officer, Air Canada (since February 2021)
- Marital status: Married (his mother and wife are both French-speaking a fact he once cited publicly in an attempt to deflect criticism about his inability to speak French)
- Net worth: Not publicly confirmed; his total compensation package at Air Canada for the 2023-24 year was CA$12.08 million, approximately US$8.3 million comprising a base salary of CA$1.3 million plus substantial stock options and bonuses
Michael Rousseau Early Life
Michael Rousseau grew up in Cornwall, a small industrial city in eastern Ontario. He had a head for numbers from an age and studied business at York University’s Schulich School of Business graduating with a Business Administration degree in 1981. Two years later he qualified as a Chartered Accountant.
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Deloitte to United Cigar Stores
He began his career as an accountant at Deloitte Haskins and Sells. By 1984 he had accepted a position as accounting manager at United Cigar Stores. He moved through financial roles at large corporations, including Silcorp Limited, the UCS Group and Moore Corporation.
Hudson’s Bay Company: Learning to Run a Retail Giant
Joining HBC as CFO
In 2001 Michael Rousseau joined Hudsons Bay Company as its Chief Financial Officer. He managed its strategy, investor relations and navigated tensions between its historic brand identity and modern retail competition.
The Hostile Takeover and the Move to President
In 2005 InterTech Group Inc. Launched a takeover bid for HBC. Rousseau was appointed President of HBC. Tasked with repositioning the retail giant. He demonstrated his ability to lead an organization through disruption and manage stakeholders under pressure.
The Beginning of a Twenty-Year Relationship
Joining as EVP and CFO in 2007
Michael Rousseau joined Air Canada as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in 2007. He oversaw a transformation at Air Canada stabilizing its pension fund and turning the airline into one of the most profitable carriers in the Western Hemisphere.
The Transformation of Air Canada’s Finances
Rousseau’s work at Air Canada was remarkable. He oversaw all aspects of Air Canada’s reporting and planning investor relations, treasury and controller operations. In 2017 he was named Canada’s CFO of the Year.
Deputy CEO: 2019
In January 2019 Rousseau’s role was expanded to Deputy Chief Executive Officer adding oversight of corporate initiatives and businesses.
Becoming CEO on February 2021
Taking the Helm in the Worst Possible Moment
Michael Rousseau was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada in February 2021 during the pandemic. His first job was survival. His second job was rebuilding.
COVID Recovery and Record Profitability
By 2023 Air Canada reported an income of CA$2.2 billion. Under his leadership Air Canada operates a fleet of over 350 aircraft flies to 200 destinations and employs approximately 35,700 people.
Star Alliance Chair
In December 2024 Rousseau was elected Chair of the Star Alliance Chief Executive Board.
What Does the Air Canada CEO Earn?
For the 2023-24 year Michael Rousseau received total compensation of CA$12.08 million. His base salary was CA$1.3 million, with the remainder coming from stock options and performance-related bonuses.
Board Memberships and Industry Roles
Rousseau has served on the Board of Directors at Resolute Forest Products since 2010. Has held multiple board memberships at other public companies. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the International Air Transport Association.
A Career Defining Saga
The Speech That Started It All
Here is where Michael Rousseau’s story takes a turn that no career CV can capture. In November 2021 months into his job as CEO he gave a 26-minute speech to a business audience in Montreal.
Air Canada’s home city and the heart of French-speaking Canada. Of those 26 minutes 20 seconds were in French.
When a journalist from Quebec TV news channel LCN asked him in French how he had managed to live in Montreal for fourteen years without speaking the language his answer caused a national uproar. He said, in terms that he had managed just fine — which many people saw as a boast about having lived in a mainly French-speaking city without ever needing to engage with its language or culture.
The reaction was immediate and fierce. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the situation was unacceptable. The NDP called for Rousseau’s resignation. Quebec nationalists held protests outside Air Canada offices. Over 1,000 complaints were filed with the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages within days. The language commissioner ultimately found the complaints valid, ruling that Air Canada had not met its obligations under the Official Languages Act.
Rousseau apologized, promised to take lessons and survived the scandal — but just barely.
2022: Summoned to Ottawa
The commissioners report in 2022 made five recommendations to Air Canada including ensuring senior leaders and spokespeople conduct all public communications in both official languages with equal quality and building official languages performance objectives into the evaluations of all senior leaders. Rousseau was summoned to Parliament’s Official Languages Committee to explain himself.
The LaGuardia Crash and the Third Strike
In March 2026 the French language issue returned with devastating force. On March 22 2026 Air Canada Express Flight 8646 — operated by Jazz Aviation — collided with a fire truck on the runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York during landing. Both pilots, Antoine Forest and Mackenzie Gunther were killed. Then forty passengers were sent to hospital.
Antoine Forest was a French-speaking Quebecer.
Rousseau recorded a four-minute condolence video. Posted it online. In the four minutes he spoke two words in French: “Bonjour” and “Merci.” The rest was in English with subtitles.
The reaction in Quebec and across Canada was intense. Prime Minister Mark Carney said Rousseau’s choice lacked compassion and judgment. Quebec Premier Francois Legault, who had noted in 2021 that Rousseau had promised to learn French upon becoming CEO, called for his resignation outright. Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet said the Air Canada board should force him out. Industry Minister Melanie Joly called it a failure of leadership. Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada said Rousseau had lost the respect of francophones. The Commissioner of Official Languages received 795 complaints within the 24 hours.
Air Canada’s statement explained that Rousseau chose English because his French is not good enough to convey such a message as effectively as he would have liked. He had headed to the crash site himself after recording the video.
The parliamentary Official Languages Committee voted unanimously to summon Rousseau to Ottawa again — his second summons on the same issue in five years. As of now calls for his resignation have not stopped.
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Personal Life
Michael Rousseau keeps his life private, which is understandable given the media attention that comes with his role. What is known is that he is married. In the heat of the 2021 language controversy he mentioned that both his mother and his wife speak French, a detail that was met with more criticism than sympathy as many pointed out that having French-speaking family members does not substitute for making the effort to learn the language yourself when leading a nationally bilingual company based in Montreal.
He has lived in Montreal for over fourteen years. Details about children or other family members have not been made public.
Quick Reference
- Born: Cornwall, Ontario, Canada
- Education: BBA, York University Schulich School of Business (1981); CA designation (1983)
- Career start: Articled at Deloitte Haskins and Sells; joined United Cigar Stores as accounting manager in 1984
- roles before Air Canada: Moore Corporation (Chicago) Silcorp Limited, UCS Group, Hudson’s Bay Company (CFO then President)
- Joined Air Canada: October 2007 as EVP and CFO
- Became Deputy CEO: January 2019
- Became President and CEO: February 2021
- Star Alliance Chair: Elected December 2024
- Award: Canada’s CFO of the Year 2017
- Compensation (2023-24): CA$12.08 million total (approx. US$8.3 million)
- Designations: FCA and FCPA (CPA Ontario)
- Board memberships: Resolute Forest Products; International Air Transport Association Board of Governors
- Language controversy: Summoned to Parliament’s Official Languages Committee in 2022 and again in 2026
Final Assessment
Michael Rousseau is a figure in Canadian business. On the numbers and strategy his record at Air Canada is hard to argue with. He helped fix the airline’s pension, rebuilt its finances after the crisis, navigated the pandemic and led the company to record profits. As an expert and operational leader he is one of the most qualified executives in Canadian corporate history.
Leading a national institution is about more than just numbers and profits. Air Canada is not a company — it is a symbol of Canada with a law that makes bilingualism a cornerstone of national identity. For a CEO of that airline not being able or willing to communicate in French — after fourteen years living in Montreal after repeated controversy after public promises to learn — is a problem that keeps happening. The tragedy at LaGuardia and what followed showed that some lessons, no matter how many times they are taught, have not been learned.
Whether Michael Rousseau survives his third language controversy remains to be seen. What is certain is that his legacy will always have two parts: the architect of one of the corporate turnarounds in Canadian aviation history and the CEO who repeatedly struggled to speak to half of the country he was supposed to serve.
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