Colonial era

Before the airport was constructed, the area was covered in dense jungle. With the economic development of communities around Kampung Sungai Durian—particularly in the Sungai Durian Motor Port area—the flow of transportation along the Kapuas River increased rapidly. Traffic congestion also intensified following the opening of the road from the Simpang Tiga junction to Pontianak, resulting in heavier traffic both on the Kapuas River and on land routes. Observing and considering the increasingly congested transportation flows around the Sungai Durian area, the Dutch East Indies government began to seek alternative modes of transport to alleviate the congestion on the Kapuas River. The Dutch authorities subsequently reached an agreement with the Pontianak Sultanate to construct the airfield in that area. Another key consideration for building the airfield was strategic defense, namely to maintain Dutch control in West Kalimantan amid the growing Japanese threat and the rising independence sentiment in the region at the time. In preparation for the construction, engineers from the Netherlands were brought to Pontianak to survey and study the area.

Construction of the airport began in 1940. However, before the airfield was completed, the Pacific War—part of World War II—broke out in 1941. The Japanese bombed and strafed the airfield in December 1941, forcing local residents to flee. In early 1942, Japanese forces launched the invasion of the Dutch East Indies. The Dutch retreated, and the unfinished airfield was subsequently captured by the Japanese. During the occupation, construction of Sungai Durian Airfield was continued and eventually completed by the Japanese, using romusha labor. The airfield was intended to strengthen Japan’s air power in West Kalimantan by accommodating military aircraft to support various operations against Allied forces. Throughout the war the Japanese stationed their aircraft at the airbase. The airfield was one of many sites of the Pontianak massacre from late 1944 to early 1945, during which ethnic Chinese suspected of conspiring against the Japanese were beheaded and buried in mass graves they had been forced to dig themselves. Near the end of the war, between June and August 1945, the airfield was bombed by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) to neutralize the runway, rendering the airfield inoperative.

After Japan’s surrender in 1945, the airfield was taken over by the Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA). However, little effort was made to restore the facility, which had been heavily damaged by wartime bombing. By then, the airfield had fallen into severe disrepair, with parts overgrown by forest and others converted into farmland.

Independence era

Following the Dutch recognition of Indonesia’s sovereignty, they withdrew from Pontianak and the airfield was taken over by Indonesian authorities. In 1951, efforts began to rebuild the war-torn facility. Over the following years, the airfield was gradually developed and expanded into a fully operational airport.

In the early 1960s, in preparation for Operation Dwikora—part of the Indonesia–Malaysia Confrontation, a military campaign aimed at opposing the formation of Malaysia—the airbase was upgraded due to its strategic significance and proximity to the Sarawak border. The apron and runway were upgraded to accommodate more military aircraft, and the number of personnel stationed at the airfield was increased. During the confrontation, the airbase served as a key base for operations against Commonwealth forces.

In 1965, the airfield was upgraded to accommodate Convair aircraft, and on 29 July 1965, Garuda Indonesia launched its inaugural flight between Pontianak and Jakarta. Previously, the airfield had only been capable of accommodating the Douglas DC-3 Dakota. By 1969, the airfield was already capable of accommodating aircraft such as the C-130 Hercules, and the road linking it to Pontianak had been improved and paved.

In the 1980s, the airport was renamed to its current name, in honor of Lieutenant Colonel Supadio, an Indonesian Air Force officer who had been stationed at the airbase. Supadio tragically died in an airplane crash alongside Colonel Nurtanio Pringgoadisurjo in Bandung in 1966.

International services began in the 1970s with flights to Kuching in neighboring Sarawak, operated by Merpati Nusantara Airlines. In September 1985, Garuda Indonesia introduced flights to Singapore using the Fokker F28. In late October 1989, Malaysia Airlines launched services between Kuching and Pontianak, operating three times a week until the early 2000s. These international routes were suspended in 1998 during the Asian financial crisis. However, flights to Kuching resumed in mid-1999 and were subsequently operated by Batavia Air, Kalstar Aviation, and Xpress Air, followed later by Wings Air and, more recently, AirAsia. In the early to mid-2010s, additional short-lived international routes included services to Singapore, operated by Batavia Air, and to Johor Bahru, operated by Xpress Air.