The airport had no stairs for large airliners and the passengers had to be evacuated by Garden City Fire Department ladder trucks.

The new terminal has greatly expanded space and a passenger loading bridge to accommodate the current 65-seat jet aircraft now serving the airport.

Service was first operated through and old municipal airport three miles east of Garden City until 1947 when flights began landing at the current airfield.

Lockheed Model 10 Electra and Douglas DC-3 aircraft were used and by 1957 the eastbound flights were redirected from Wichita directly to Kansas City making up to five stops.

Commuter airline Air Midwest began service in 1976 and replaced Frontier in 1977 with direct flights to Denver and Wichita using 17-seat Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner aircraft.

Great Lakes lost its designation as United Express in 2002 but continued to serve Garden City from Denver under its own branding.

[1] In the year ending June 30, 2020 the airport had 15,003 aircraft operations, an average of 41 per day: 79% general aviation, 20% air taxi and 1% military.