[3][4] The city wanted a new airport and put in for a Works Progress Administration project that was called the Stillwater Airfield.

[5][6] The mission of Redding Army Air Field was advanced flight training of new airmen prior to their deployment overseas into the combat zones of the Pacific, China, Mediterranean or European Theaters.

On December 19, 1945, the military declared Redding AAF excess, and on November 18, 1946, it was turned over to the city for a civil airfield.

[7] Southwest Airways was serving the airport during the late 1940s with Douglas DC-3 service with a roundtrip routing of San Francisco–Oakland–Vallejo/Napa–Sacramento–Marysville/Yuba City–Chico–Red Bluff–Redding–Yreka–Medford operated several times a day.

Pacific Express BAC One-Elevens flew nonstop to San Francisco (SFO) and on to Los Angeles (LAX) and also to Portland (PDX).

In addition, American Eagle service operated by Wings West on behalf of American Airlines, using Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner (Metro III) commuter turboprops, flew nonstop to San Jose (SJC), San Francisco (SFO), Eureka/Arcata (ACV), and Klamath Falls (LMT) at various points until late 1993.

[1] In 12 months through December 31, 2022, the airport had 60,902 aircraft operations, average 167 per day: 63% general aviation, 33% air taxi, 3% scheduled commercial and 1% military.

[19] The City of Redding's remodel and expansion of the terminal building was complete as of November 11, 2014, when the grand opening took place.

The project cost approximately $9.8 million, with the majority of funds coming from the FAA Airport Improvement Program.