Lead
Anko van der Werff, the chief executive who navigated SAS through bankruptcy and helped restore its post-pandemic operations, has emerged as the leading candidate to become Air Canada’s next permanent chief executive, according to people familiar with the situation. The potential hire would place an executive with significant turnaround experience atop a carrier whose stock trades at roughly half its pre-COVID value and whose full-year financial guidance remains suspended.
Search context and governance
Air Canada has been conducting a search for a permanent CEO since Michael Rousseau announced his planned departure in March. Market participants and investors have been watching the process closely because a credible succession outcome could serve as a short-term catalyst for shares that have struggled to recapture ground lost during and after the pandemic.
Rousseau’s resignation followed intense public and political backlash provoked by a corporate video he recorded after a fatal aircraft accident that killed two Air Canada pilots at LaGuardia Airport in New York. The criticism focused on his failure to speak French in that video - a significant lapse for the chief executive of a carrier headquartered in the Montreal region, where the airline is legally required to provide services in both of Canada’s official languages.
Candidate profile
Van der Werff brings an extensive operational résumé. He led SAS for approximately five years, a period that included steering the Scandinavian carrier out of bankruptcy and restoring its operations as international travel recovered. Prior to his tenure at SAS, he served as CEO of Avianca between 2019 and 2021 and held senior roles at Grupo Aeromexico, Qatar Airways, and Air France-KLM. Those positions span both emerging-market and legacy-carrier environments.
Language ability is a salient part of van der Werff’s profile. He speaks Dutch, English, and Spanish, and has only a basic understanding of French, according to a 2021 release from SAS. That linguistic mix could draw scrutiny from Quebec politicians and francophone advocacy groups, echoing the sensitivities that surrounded Rousseau’s exit.
Corporate ties and transition issues
SAS is partially owned by Air France-KLM, a fact that could give rise to conflict-of-interest concerns among SAS shareholders and bondholders if van der Werff moves to lead a competing transatlantic carrier. The timing also complicates any potential transition: SAS this week announced a major fleet investment in new Airbus SE widebody jets, a strategic commitment van der Werff helped shape and that could make an immediate move more complex for the Scandinavian carrier.
Financial backdrop for Air Canada
The leadership search unfolds amid a challenging financial outlook for Air Canada. The carrier suspended its full-year guidance in May, citing soaring jet fuel prices tied to the blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. That suspension removed the earnings visibility institutional investors typically require to build conviction in an airline stock.
Without an active guidance range, a newly appointed CEO will face immediate pressure to reassess the fuel-cost environment and re-engage the analyst community. Investors already weigh AC shares against a set of structural and cyclical headwinds - yield pressure, cost inflation, and an unclear earnings trajectory - that any incoming chief executive will need to address credibly and quickly.
Investor implications and next steps
The key near-term development to monitor is a formal announcement from Air Canada’s board. A confirmed appointment would likely trigger renewed analyst commentary on whether the new chief executive’s record justifies a re-rating of the stock, and whether management will move to reinstate financial guidance before year-end. Any sign that jet fuel cost pressure is easing would offer additional support for a leadership team seeking to reset investor expectations.
Until the board makes an official decision, the situation presents a mix of operational opportunity and political complexity for Air Canada - a carrier attempting to close the gap between current market valuation and its pre-pandemic level while navigating language sensitivities and industry cost volatility.