Press Releases
Baton Rouge Metro Airport May Passenger Count Highest Since Start of Pandemic
At 54,625 total passengers, the May 2021 passenger count was the highest monthly number recorded since the start of the pandemic at the Baton Rouge Metro Airport (BTR), representing a 420% increase over May 2020.
The May 2021 numbers included 27,696 departing passengers (enplanements) and 26,929 arriving passengers (deplanements), and reached 78% of the May 2019 (pre-pandemic) count. BTR’s passenger statistics for May outperformed the national trends, which reached 68% of May 2019 numbers based on TSA passenger screenings.
American carried the most BTR passengers in May with a 47% share, followed by Delta at 31% and United at 22%.
“With the themes Break Out and Get Away, our new ad campaign targets the pent-up demand for vacations and visiting friends and family,” said Mike Edwards, Baton Rouge Metro Airport Director of Aviation. “We are happy to see that demand reflected in our passenger count, which in turn provides the airlines with justification for increasing seating capacity.”
BTR and the airlines continue to follow strict cleaning and disinfecting protocols in the terminal and on the aircraft. High-touch surfaces at BTR are cleaned frequently with hospital-grade disinfectants, and disinfectant fogging is done in the terminal building at night. American, Delta and United utilize fogging by spraying an electrically-charged and safe to breathe disinfectant on interior aircraft surfaces before the physical cleaning process to ensure germs and viruses are eradicated. HEPA filters on the aircraft capture at least 99.97% of airborne microbes by circulating the cabin air once every 2 to 4 minutes. As the filters purify the air on the inside of the aircraft, fresh air enters the engine compressor on the outside, making the cabin air much cleaner than the air in most restaurants, bars, stores or commercial buildings.
About BTR
The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport is served by the major, network airlines – American, Delta and United – with frequent hub flights that provide access to destinations worldwide. The airport provides an annual economic impact of $1.1 billion and over 4500 direct and indirect jobs in the Baton Rouge area. The Airport is administered as an Enterprise Fund, generating its own revenues for operations as opposed to using local tax funds.
Contact: Jim Caldwell
Air Service Development, Marketing & Public Relations Manager
Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport
Phone 225-931-9098
jcaldwell@brgov.com