Graves Announces $1 Million Headed to Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport to Establish Direct Service to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

BATON ROUGE, LA - U.S. Congressman Garret Graves, the Ranking Member of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Aviation, announced Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport (BTR) will receive a $1 million grant to establish a direct flight between BTR and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). This will complement the funding provided by Louisiana Legislature to improve air service to and from the Baton Rouge airport. The Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP) Grant Award will be awarded from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

'Over the past two years, we have secured record investment in the Baton Rouge airport to help provide better air service out of the region. Based on passenger data, Washington DC and Chicago are the two most frequent destinations out of our airport. This investment will help to establish a direct flight between Baton Rouge and Washington DC. Lord knows Washington needs our help at a moment's notice,' Graves said.

Since being named the top Republican on the Aviation Subcommittee in January 2019, Graves has helped secure more than $43 million in federal funding for BTR.

Breakdown Below:

• FY19 AIP: $7,163,418
• Supplemental AIP: $15,000,000
• FY20 AIP: $5,666,667 (includes $566,667 in CARES Act local match)
• CARES: $8,413,011
• Omnibus (Dec 12/20): $2.993M
• ARP (3/21): $4.827M
• FY21 AIP: $4,286,525

Note: This request was initiated by the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport based on passenger data. While our office did advocate for the funding, we played no role in which flight routes were selected.

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