The settlement it serves is small, with the airport primarily functioning as a transfer point for passengers heading for the helicopter hubs of Air Greenland in Qaqortoq and Nanortalik.

During World War II, the airbase−codenamed Bluie West One−hosted squadrons of PBY Catalina flying boats and B-25 Mitchell bombers with the assignment to escort allied convoys and track and destroy German submarines.

[citation needed] Civil air traffic began in 1949 with Douglas DC-4 propliners operated by Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) and Icelandair.

From November 1959, the Danish Air Force had three PBY Catalinas stationed at Narsarsuaq with the assignment to make ice-observations along the coast of Greenland, and these observations were broadcast to ships in the area.

The airport served as a regional focus city for Air Greenland until the late 2000s, when tough economic conditions forced the airline to raise the low season prices several times.

Later the same year, the airline announced the acquisition of two new STOL aircraft, being de Havilland Canada Dash-8 200 turboprops, one of which would serve the newly opened triangular route between Narsarsuaq, Nuuk, and Reykjavík-Keflavík.

[11] With the Boeing airliner sold on 26 April 2010,[12] the entire Kujalleq municipality, and southern Greenland in general remains without prospects for a direct connection to continental Europe.

In the terminal there is a simple cafeteria, a duty-free 'Nanoq' shop,[16] as well as a small tourist office, which helps coordinate general aviation activities at the airport.