Air Canada has selected Anko Van der Werff as its next chief executive officer, effective early 2026. The 50-year-old Dutch executive succeeds Michael Rousseau, who resigned in spring 2025 amid controversy over his inability to speak French. Van der Werff brings more than 25 years of international aviation experience, having held senior roles at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Qatar Airways, Aeroméxico, Avianca S.A., and Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS).
Career Path and International Experience
Van der Werff began his airline career in management at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, now part of Air France-KLM S.A. He later served in senior commercial roles at Qatar Airways and as executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Aeroméxico. Before joining SAS in 2021, he was president and chief executive of Colombia-based Avianca S.A. from mid-2019.
According to RBC Dominion Securities Inc. analyst James McGarragle, Van der Werff inherited a "structurally troubled carrier" at Avianca and implemented a turnaround plan called "Avianca 2021" that "measurably improved" the airline before the COVID-19 pandemic forced it into Chapter 11 bankruptcy. McGarragle noted, "This is a nuanced but important distinction — the bankruptcy was exogenous, not a management outcome."
Education and Personal Background
Van der Werff holds a master's degree in law from Leiden University and completed executive studies at Harvard Business School, Air Canada said in a press release. He grew up in a small village near Groningen in the Netherlands. He is married with children and describes himself as a "family man," a world traveller, and a lifelong sports enthusiast who plays football, tennis, and padel. In a LinkedIn post last year, he said football is a "huge passion" and that he plays weekly with a team from SAS.
On the Dutch wellness podcast Health for Wealth in April 2025, Van der Werff said, "In many ways … I consider myself in a sense quite boring, because it's really just family, and work, and then there are sports."
Language Skills and French Requirement
Air Canada, headquartered in Montreal, is subject to the Official Languages Act, requiring services in both English and French. The company said its CEO performance criteria included French proficiency. Van der Werff speaks Dutch and Spanish fluently and can communicate in French, English, Italian, and Swedish at varying levels.
Outgoing CEO Rousseau announced his retirement in March 2025 after criticism in Quebec for delivering an English-only condolence message following a fatal collision at New York's LaGuardia Airport. Air Canada stated its succession plans had been in the works for some time but were expedited after Rousseau's resignation.
