Situated near the town of Kempton Park on the East Rand, it replaced Palmietfontein International Airport, which had handled European flights since 1945.

[5]: 224  The South African Railways and Harbours Administration was given the role of managing the project and later in 1944, a member went to the United States to study standards and methods of construction.

[6] The new airport was officially opened by Minister for Transport, Paul Sauer on 4 October 1953 having taken eight years to build at £6.2 million.

[7] Airlines using the airport at its opening were BOAC, Air France, KLM, SAA, Central African Airways, Qantas, El Al, SAS Group and DETA.

[6] In the late 1950s, jet passenger aircraft became the norm and there was a need to expand the existing ground facilities at the airport, which began in the 1960s and early-1970s.

[9]: 339  Construction started in December 1968 and was completed in October 1971 for R8,000,000 while other work at the airport associated with the arrival of these new aircraft brought the costs to R40,000,000.

[12]: 14  The main part of the projects was an 880 m, 3000 t steel airside corridor consisting of two levels high of 6 m wide with thirteen passenger bridges.

The proposal was formally announced in the Government Gazette of South Africa on 30 June 2006, allowing a 30-day window for the public to register objections.

Corne Mulder of the Freedom Front Plus described the renaming as "nothing less than political opportunism and attempts by the ANC government to dodge the true socio-economic issues of the country".

There was no provision for rapid train access until 2010, when the Gautrain opened and allowed passengers to reach the airport from the Johannesburg CBD, Sandton and Pretoria.

This room full of South African Airways memorabilia was started by two fans of the airline as a temporary location until they could set it up in one of Jan Smuts International's buildings in 1987.

One is located above the Central Terminal Building, and the other in an administrative section of the airport above the international check-in counters.

There are regular displays of Oliver Reginald Tambo, the airport's namesake in the viewing decks.

Wind factors may cause numerous variations, but on most days flights will take off to the north and land from the south.

O. R. Tambo International Airport has a network of asphalt taxiways connecting runways, aprons and maintenance facilities.

The Bravo apron is not connected to the terminal building, and thus aircraft that are parked there must use an airport bus service.

ACSA reported that major new developments took place at the airport, in preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

[22] A new Central Terminal building, designed by Osmond Lange Architects and Planners, was completed on 1 April 2009.

[citation needed] An additional multi-storey parkade was built in January 2010, at a cost of R470 million opposite the Central Terminal Building,[citation needed] plus Terminal A was also upgraded and the associated roadways realigned to accommodate more International Departures space.

[citation needed] Air bridges are already in place and the existing duty-free mall will be extended into this area.

In March 2024, a capital investment plan was announced that shall encompass over $1 billion in several airports across South Africa.

[130] The fourth floor of the West Wing of the Pier Development of O. R. Tambo was also the head office of South African Express until it ceased operating in 2020.

[131][132][133] The Gautrain, a modern regional express rail system, serves the airport thanks to its station located directly in the terminal.

It links the airport with Sandton, a major business district and a primary tourist area, and, from there, the rest of the Gautrain system.

This highway goes through the airport terminals, separating them from the parking bays, but it branches off into two directions: "departures" and "arrivals", and then it re-branches into the intersection.