Since October 12, 1951, it is named after the Senator and first Minister of the Brazilian Air Force Joaquim Pedro Salgado Filho (1888–1950).

Salgado Filho was originally called São João Federal Airport, after the neighborhood where it is located.

It underwent major renovations and enlargements between 1969 and 1971; but unable to cope with the increasing traffic, another brand new facility was built.

[10] This terminal 2 was again closed for air traffic on September 15, 2019, and it became the administration center of Fraport Brasil S.A.- Aeroporto de Porto Alegre.

One of the two TAP Maintenance & Engineering centers in Brazil is located at Salgado Filho International Airport.

On July 15, 2024, all departure and arrival procedures restarted taking place at the Salgado Filho airport terminal, but with the passengers driven by bus directly to and from the Air Force Base apron.

The full airport resumption of services was done in two phases: the first using a runway length of 1,730 m (5,676 ft) least affected by the flooding and restricted to 128 flights a day between 08:00 and 22:00.

[21][22][23][24] Following is the number of passenger, aircraft and cargo movements at the airport, according to Infraero (2007-2017) and Fraport Brazil (2018-2024) reports:[29][30][1] Note: a: Between 27 May and 20 October 2024 flights were operated at Canoas Air Force Base with restrictions.

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Media related to Salgado Filho International Airport at Wikimedia Commons