AC: A Turnaround Specialist Inherits a Stable Carrier

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AC: A Turnaround Specialist Inherits a Stable Carrier

EQUITY RESEARCH QUICK TAKE

RBC Dominion Securities Inc.

James McGarragle, CFA, CPA (Analyst)

July 8, 2026

Air Canada

A Turnaround Specialist Inherits a Stable Carrier

TSX: AC | CAD 25.37 | Outperform | Price Target CAD 28.00

Sentiment: Positive

The News

Air Canada has named Anko Van der Werff as its next President & CEO, effective by end of January 2027. He succeeds Michael

Rousseau, whose retirement is effective August 31, 2026. The appointment follows an succession process and a global external

search launched in January 2026.

Our Read: Cautiously Positive

Van der Werff is a credible, experienced aviation executive with a genuine track record of navigating complexity. His two most

recent stints — at Avianca and SAS — demonstrate a consistent pattern of disciplined transformation execution under difficult

circumstances, which is exactly the skillset AC's Board was looking for.

Track Record Deep Dive

Avianca (CEO, 2019–2021) — Incomplete Turnaround, Interrupted by COVID

Van der Werff inherited a structurally troubled carrier in mid-2019 and launched the "Avianca 2021" turnaround plan, centered

on capacity discipline, fleet rightsizing, cost reduction, network optimization, and balance sheet deleveraging. The plan was in

progress and early results were tangible: on-time performance improved by over 10-pts in some months (from the low-60s%), the

passenger completion rate reached 98.7%, customer satisfaction rose 6 points, and then COVID hit. Avianca filed for Chapter 11

in May 2020, with Van der Werff explicitly framing it as a forced response to a complete grounding, not a management failure.

The "Avianca 2021" plan had measurably improved the airline before the pandemic intervened. This is a nuanced but important