The Nevada Air National Guard has the 152nd Airlift Wing southwest of the airport's main terminal.

The first terminal building was completed in time for the 1960 Winter Olympics held in Squaw Valley, California in 1960.

In March 2013, a $24 million expansion of the airport was completed and focused on a new centralized TSA Security Checkpoint on the ground level, and above it, a shopping and dining promenade called "High Mountain Marketplace".

[10] In February 2014, the airport announced that Volaris planned to start operating non-stop service flights to Guadalajara, Mexico sometime in 2015.

On October 7, 2014, the DOT and the airport announced that Volaris would start a twice weekly flight to Guadalajara, Mexico from Reno on December 16, 2014.

[11] In November 2014, Thomas Cook Airlines announced that it planned to introduce twice weekly, non-stop flights from London–Gatwick to Reno starting in December 2015.

[12] However, Thomas Cook Airlines canceled these plans in May 2015 stating insufficient border control capacities at the airport to handle their Airbus A330.

In the year ending June 30, 2019, the airport had 104,239 aircraft operations, with an average of 285 per day: 46% airline, 41% general aviation, 11% air taxi, and 2% military.

After completing the rental agreement inside, vehicles may be collected from the parking structure located just outside the baggage claim.

Public transportation to/from the airport is available via RTC Ride bus: Complimentary hotel shuttles stop along the curb, outside the D Doors located north of the baggage claim, to pick up passengers.