[11] Clover Field was once the site of the Army's 40th Division Aviation, 115th Observation Squadron and became a Distribution Center after World War II.

During World War II, B-18 Bolo and B-18A bombers and thousands of C-47 (military version of the DC-3) and C-54 (later the civilian DC-4) military transports were built at Santa Monica, during which time the airport area was cleverly disguised from the air with the construction of a false "town" (built with the help of Hollywood craftsmen) suspended atop it.

The city, bowing to objections of residents, refused to do so, and Douglas closed a plant that had employed 44,000 workers in World War II, moving airliner production to Long Beach Airport.

[3] However, in their first conflict, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a city could impose reasonable restrictions on airport activity and noise.

[3] Further, in 1981, the airport's 215 acres (87 hectares) occupied five percent of the usable land of Santa Monica, in the heart of the burgeoning population of the Greater Los Angeles area, making it highly desirable real estate for development.

[3] Battles between opponents and defenders of the airport have continued, with various court decisions and FAA legal opinions emerging, favoring one side or the other.

[14][15] In 2009, with jet traffic increasing at SMO, studies by UCLA and the South Coast Air Quality Management District warned that SMO was a source of abnormally high air pollution in the area, particularly for ultrafine particles that threatened the health of children and the elderly, and those with respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

The FAA attempted remediation by controlling the timing of engine run-ups and positioning of aircraft, but some residents complained that the measures failed to resolve the problem.

[18] In 2022, the Frieze Art Fair announced that its Los Angeles edition would move to the airport in 2023, occupying a massive temporary tent designed by Kulapat Yantrasast’s architecture firm WHY and hosting more than 100 exhibitors in addition to expanded programming and activations.

[19] U.S. Presidents Donald Trump (in 2019) and Joe Biden (in 2022 and 2023) both landed at SMO during visits to the area—arriving in their Marine One helicopter, after first arriving at Los Angeles International Airport aboard Air Force One.

One of the airport's oldest buildings, next to the restored Douglas DC-3, hosts the U.S. Civil Air Patrol's Clover Field Composite Squadron 51.

The park[28] features a synthetic turf soccer field, open green space and off-leash dog area.

[6] The hangar has hosted a variety of events, including boxing matches, art presentations, movies, concerts, wine and food festivals, and trade shows.

[37] The city appealed on October 14, 2014, citing the expiration of the 1948 agreement, after which FAA had agreed to release control of the city-owned parcel.

An array of issues exists, which are still hotly debated in local, state, and national political arenas – as well as the courts.

Cited reasons for public support of airport closure are an alleged threat to safety, despite no ground fatalities in the neighborhood around the airport in over a century,[40] including a November 26, 1993, crash by a student pilot into an apartment building directly adjacent to a gasoline filling station, in a densely populated area of the city, and resulting in three fatalities (none on the ground).

[41] One tactic recommended by airport opponents is to demolish the portion of the runway which sits upon this land, with the primary justification being safety.

It is anticipated that the airport land will be redeveloped into areas for parks, open space, recreation, education and/or cultural use.