Tester Pushes Biden Administration to Expand Air Service at Butte’s Bert Mooney Airport

In letter to Department of Transportation, Senator urges Department to approve proposal that would allow SkyWest to provide daily flights to Salt Lake and Denver

Continuing his efforts to expand air service in Montana, U.S. Senator Jon Tester today pushed the Biden Administration to approve an application that would expand essential air service at Butte's Bert Mooney airport. In a letter to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, Tester urged the Administration to support a proposal that would allow SkyWest Airlines to provide daily commercial flights from Butte to Salt Lake City and Denver.

"Expanding air service is vital to Butte's ability to grow and attract businesses, lower the cost of traveling and keep families connected, " Tester wrote. "Too often rural communities are not afforded the same opportunities for air service as urban counterparts. That's why I worked with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to appropriate funds to [Essential Air Service]. Opportunities like SkyWest's application are exactly what these funds are intended to accomplish."

Tester has led the charge to upgrade Montana's airports and expand air service in Montana. He secured approximately $144 million forMontana's airports through his bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which will be awarded over five years between 2022 and 2026. This funding can be used to construct or repair runways and taxiways as well as make terminal and gate improvements. Tester has also led the effort to lower costs and expand access to reliable air service in rural communities.

Just last month, Tester secured $1.2 million for Butte's Bert Mooney airport through his bipartisan infrastructure law to construct a new passenger boarding bridge and new snow removal equipment to clear the airfield during adverse weather conditions.

In May, Tester successfully included key priorities to increase affordable air service in legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), including the Small Community Air Service Enhancement Act that will help small airports compete for grants to attract new air carrier service to their communities and reauthorization of the Essential Air Service program (EAS) to ensure Montana's rural communities continue to have airline service options connecting them to larger hubs.

You can read the full text of the Senator's letterHERE.