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[WORLD]

Mark Carney rebukes Air Canada chief over English-only crash message

The prime minister says the condolence video after the fatal LaGuardia crash revived anger over linguistic rights.

Editorial StaffMarch 25, 20261 MIN READ

On March 25, 2026, Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed the backlash from an English-only condolence message issued by Air Canada's chief executive after a fatal incident at LaGuardia Airport.

The incident has drawn attention to the broader implications for linguistic rights in Canada, particularly in a bilingual context where both English and French are official languages.

Carney's comments suggest a potential reevaluation of communication protocols within major Canadian corporations, emphasizing the need for inclusive messaging that respects the country's linguistic diversity.

Updates

Update at 17:57 UTC on 2026-03-26

BBC World reported Michael Rousseau faces backlash for not addressing victims in French following the tragic LaGuardia incident.

Sources: BBC World

Update at 23:55 UTC on 2026-03-26

DW News reported CEO Michael Rousseau's unilingual condolence message to the pilots killed in a collision in New York over the weekend was seen as 'lacking judgement.'.

Sources: DW News