World War II

Juwata Airport was originally constructed by the Dutch colonial government and served as a military base for the Royal Netherlands East Indies Air Force (ML-KNIL). Initially, the airport was constructed with a 1,500-meter runway. The airbase played a role in the First Battle of Tarakan, which began on 11 January 1942, a day after Japan declared war on the Netherlands. It was one of the key strategic objectives for Japanese forces at the onset of their invasion of the Dutch East Indies. However, the airbase was too small to function effectively as a defensive stronghold. It lacked adequate facilities to accommodate both fighters and bombers and was poorly defended, equipped only with 20 mm anti-aircraft guns and machine guns. As a result, the Dutch abandoned the airbase before the Japanese landing, allowing it to be captured intact. On 13 January 1942, the Dutch attempted to render the airbase unusable by launching an air raid with 15 Martin B-10 bombers, which caused considerable damage. Nevertheless, the Japanese quickly repaired the airbase and used it as a staging ground for their subsequent invasion of Balikpapan.

During the three-year Japanese occupation, the airbase was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. It became the primary Allied objective during the Second Battle of Tarakan in May 1945. At the time, around 400 personnel from the Japanese 2nd Naval Garrison Force were stationed at the airfield. The task of capturing the airstrip was assigned to the Australian Army's 2/24th Battalion. Their initial assault on the night of 2 May was delayed when Japanese forces detonated large explosive charges, and the airstrip was not fully secured until 5 May. While the infantry of the 26th Brigade Group engaged Japanese forces in the surrounding hills, Royal Australian Air Force engineers from No. 61 Airfield Construction Wing worked urgently to restore the airbase to operational status. Due to extensive damage from pre-invasion bombings and the marshy terrain, repairs proved far more difficult than anticipated. What was expected to take one week instead took eight. Engineers used large quantities of Marston Mat—interlocking steel plates—to stabilize the runway. Some remnants of these plates can still be seen today in the airport's parking area. While the airstrip was finally opened on 28 June, this was too late for it to play any role in supporting the landings in Brunei or Labuan, or the landings at Balikpapan. However No. 78 Wing RAAF was based on Tarakan from 28 June and flew in support of the Balikpapan operation until the end of the war.

Contemporary history

After the war, the airport was handed back to the Dutch through the Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA), and later transferred to the newly independent Indonesian government following the Dutch recognition of Indonesia's sovereignty and subsequent withdrawal. Initially, the airport operated as a pioneer airfield, serving rural routes with small aircraft.

Due to its strategic geographical location, the airport was one of the earliest international airports in Kalimantan, with routes to Zamboanga in the Philippines and Tawau, Malaysia since the early 1970s. At the time, the route to Zamboanga was operated by Bouraq Indonesian Airlines, with onward connections to Balikpapan. At the same time, the government began planning to upgrade the airport to accommodate larger aircraft, such as the Fokker F27.

In 2000, the runway was extended to 1,850 meters, enabling the airport to accommodate narrow-body aircraft such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

During the 2010 Tarakan riot, negotiation between the Bugis and Tidung communities to end the conflict was held in the airport.

All international flights were suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the airport's international status was officially revoked in 2024 due to the prolonged absence of scheduled international services. The North Kalimantan provincial government is actively working to restore the airport's international status and resume international flights. The airport is planned to be a transit hub for people from other countries such as Malaysia, Brunei and Philippines traveling to other cities in Indonesia.

In August 2025, following a decree issued by the Ministry of Transportation, the airport’s international status was reinstated. The following month, the airport announced plans to launch an international route to Guangzhou, China, with the aim of boosting import and export activities in Tarakan. Plans are also underway to resume flights to Tawau and introduce a new route to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia.