The airport is named for James Alexander George Smith McCartney, the territory's first Chief Minister, who died in a plane crash in New Jersey, United States in 1980.

Bahamas Airways was serving the airport by the late 1950s with weekly flights to Nassau via an intermediate stop at Inagua operated with small de Havilland Heron prop aircraft.

[3] During the mid 1970s, two airlines were operating international flights from Grand Turk including Mackey International Airlines with Douglas DC-6 propliner service to Miami (MIA) with continuing service to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) three days a week and Turks & Caicos Airways in association with Haiti Air Inter with direct flights to Cap-Haitien, Haiti continuing on Port au Prince, Haiti operated with Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander commuter prop aircraft.

[4] During the late 1970s, Southeast Airlines was operating direct no change of plane service to Miami (MIA) three days a week via a stop in South Caicos with a Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprop aircraft.

[9] Grand Turk was previously served by several different airlines operating scheduled passenger jet service between the airport and Miami (MIA).