In August 1942, the United States Army Air Forces requested that the Government of Australia construct an aerodrome on Norfolk Island for use by its heavy bombers. It was built by the Civil Constructional Corps, comprising volunteers from Government of New South Wales departments. The corps was assisted by island residents, with about 300 men employed in total. The first runway was completed in late 1942, with a Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) plane landing on Christmas Day. The second runway was opened in February 1943, and the workers left the following month.

The construction of the runways necessitated the destruction of Pine Avenue, a local landmark consisting of about 500 Norfolk Island pines reaching up to 170 feet (52 m) in height. As Norfolk Island did not have enough flat ground, in 1942 several bulldozers were used to knock the tops off several hills, and fill in the valleys between them. Steel mesh was then used to make a solid surface.

The airfield was never used as an operational base, but was available to the Allies for use as a staging depot, a refuge for aircraft in distress, and a possible base for anti-submarine patrols. A RNZAF Radar Unit operated on the island as a navigational aid, and it became a stopover for aircraft travelling between Australia, New Caledonia, New Zealand and the Solomon Islands. The RNZAF left the airfield in July 1946. At the airfield was an air-sea rescue unit, a servicing section and a radar unit installation at Mount Bates.

In 1981, the airport was expanded to allow Fokker F28s to use the airport.