Air Canada executive vice-president and chief financial officer Amos Kazzaz is retiring at the end of June, to be replaced by John Di Bert, who is the current CFO of Clarios International and has been CFO at Bombardier and Pratt & Whitney.

In a press release, president and CEO Michael Rousseau said Kazzaz helped position the airline to withstand COVID’s impact and help it spring back quickly.

“During his 13-year career at Air Canada, Amos has held the two most senior financial roles, and has made a tremendous contribution to the overall success of our company,” said Rousseau. “He has been a strong partner to me and a positive representative of Air Canada to many external stakeholders.”

He added, “Helped by Amos’ guidance and decisions, Air Canada has made material progress in many areas, including fleet management, cost reduction and efficiency, and business and strategic planning and execution. He also played a leadership role in strengthening our balance sheet and cash flow, positioning us to withstand COVID’s impact and ensure we had the resilience to spring back quickly by allowing us to invest for our future growth.”

Rousseau said Di Bert’s experience in aerospace and senior leadership roles will help lead Air Canada to realize its full potential following the pandemic.

In a note, RBC analyst Walter Spracklin said Di Bert is an experienced and well-suited candidate for the position.

A native of Montreal, Di Bert will join Air Canada May 1 to allow for an effective transition.