The airfield was constructed for the USAAF 38th Bomb Group in August 1942 as a satellite field for Charters Towers Airport, and later used by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II as a maintenance base.

The construction program which took place during 1943 involved the erection of maintenance hangars, engineering workshops, torpedo stores, personnel camps, a power station and medical facilities.

[1] As early as July 1941 the RAAF had ordered a survey of the Charters Towers district to identify sites for airfields to accommodate heavy bombers and combat aircraft.

An initial survey was undertaken during September resulting in the identification of suitable airfield sites at Corinda (Charters Towers), Sandy Creek (Breddan) and several locations near Sellheim.

The sudden fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942 and the rapid, unchecked Japanese advance through the islands of the Netherlands East Indies raised fears of the invasion of Australia and attacks on Queensland bases.

[1] Charters Towers was the closest inland centre that could provide strategic support and aircraft dispersal facilities for the main North Eastern Area air base at Garbutt, Townsville, which was considered vulnerable to Japanese attack.

By early February Charters Towers airfield had been accorded high priority and Main Roads Commission engineers were engaged to supervise the clearing and construction of two gravel runways.

[1] Arrival of the US 3 BG(L) at Charters Towers saw the need for dispersal strips in the vicinity and the revival of the earlier investigation of the Sandy Creek airfield site north of the town.

[1] Under MRC supervision, clearing and construction of an airfield at the Sandy Creek location on the northern inland road connecting Charters Towers with the Atherton Tableland, began on 10 April 1942.

Dauntless dive bombers of 3 BG(L) arrived at Charters Towers in late March 1942 and some aircraft may have been dispersed to Breddan during April.

It was initially planned that when the US bombardment squadrons vacated Charters Towers, the airfield facilities would be occupied by a RAAF aircraft repair and salvage unit.

With the US victory at Midway Island in early June, much of the proposed airfield construction program west of Charters Towers was abandoned.

[1] By June a major construction program had commenced at Breddan with the erection of approximately 40 buildings which by July were noted to be urgently in need of camouflage painting.

By late July Breddan was occupied by the RAAF No.12 Repair and Salvage Unit and ground crew of the USAAF 38th Bombardment Group (Medium).

RAAF No.13 ARD found a number of important building works were outstanding on their arrival at Breddan and the advance party were given the role of erecting their own workshops and stores as their first major task at the base.

[1] AWC minutes for 18 February 1943 include an approval to proceed with the fabrication of four "American Type Hangars" 95 by 45 feet (29 by 14 m) galvanised iron covered steel workshop buildings which had been reconstructed in Melbourne.

[1] During 1943 the AWC were asked to organise an intensive program of building construction at Breddan which received a substantial allocation of funds to cover the works.

The following works were ordered during the first half of the year: a hospital sick bay near the No.2 Camp, with a treatment room and medical officer's hut; a barracks store and officers' mess for No.1 TMU; motor transport engine repair and body chassis workshops; aircraft dismantling hangars; gun firing platform and test butts.

[1] To avoid dependency on power supply from Charters Towers a reinforced concrete sub-station building was commenced about June to hold a 25 KVA diesel electric generating plant.

On the evening of Wednesday 28 June 1944, on return from a Breddan Ball dance at the Catholic Club Hall[3] near RAAF Breddan, a traffic crash occurred 3 miles (4.8 km) south of the base which resulted in sixteen service personnel injured, and the deaths of Flight Lieutenant Bernard Barty, Corporal Thelma McConnell, and ACW Estelle Scaroni, and the later death of Sergeant Mary Wynack.

[1] The Engine Repair Section, located north of the GES, contains concrete floor surfaces for six workshops including a number of Bellman hangars.

Two other ERS workshop floor surfaces, including an engine running shed with steel tie down bolts, are located on the west side of the Gregory Developmental Road.

[1] The Torpedo Maintenance Unit camp, located at the north east end of Runway 60, contains a small reinforced concrete igloo building which served as a generator shed.

The camp area also includes the concrete floor and oven base of a mess and kitchen, and a small stone structure thought to have been a water heater or incinerator.

Archaeological evidence of an open air picture theatre includes concrete lined post holes for a projection box and a scatter of metal slide holders.

Breddan Airfield has potential to yield archaeological information that will contribute to an understanding of Queensland's history with particular regard to the layout of camp and workshop surface elements that remain comparatively undisturbed.

Breddan Airfield is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a major World War II maintenance, repair and salvage base in north Queensland, containing structural and archaeological evidence including workshop and hangar concrete floors, wartime sealed runway and taxiways, camp installations, reinforced concrete buildings, and torpedo maintenance facilities.