The British Army of the Rhine undertook an exercise in 1955, in accord with the then NATO-Strategy of quick reaction.

They built a basic 'field-made' airfield on the grass-covered area for an air-landing-exercise on this site.

On finishing this exercise, the British Army of the Rhine handed the area over to the Mayor of Mönchengladbach for use as an airfield.

A hangar was built in 1957, and the next year a control tower and passenger terminal were constructed.

Starting on 6 November 2023 Franconia Air Service offers domestic scheduled flights to Nuremberg Airport.