On 25 May 2002, the airport was named "Colonel Bud Day Field" in honor of United States Air Force Colonel George Everette "Bud" Day, a Sioux City, Iowa native and is the only person ever awarded both the Medal of Honor and the Air Force Cross.

The construction of Sioux City AAB began in March 1942, about three months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Opened on 5 July 1942, it became a major training center during World War II,[2] initially for B-17 Flying Fortress, and later B-24 Liberator groups.

The major training activities at Sioux City included aerial gunnery, bombardment, navigation, formation flying, and other related courses.

Hollywood actor, pilot and Army Air Force Captain (later Brigadier General) James Stewart was posted to Sioux City with his squadron in 1943, where he and his crew completed their initial B-24 Liberator qualification prior to deployment overseas.

With the end of World War II, the former training base switched to becoming a processing center to discharge personnel out of the service and back into civilian life.

[11] The mission of the 140th AFBU was to offer flight and ground training to all commissioned and enlisted members of the Air Force Reserve residing in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

In 1959, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) Data Center (DC-22) was established at Sioux City AFS.

The operation of DC-22 with its AN/FSQ-7 computer was the primary mission of SCADS, as well as providing air defense over parts of Minnesota, Colorado and Wyoming The Sector was disestablished on 1 April 1966 as part of an ADC consolidation and reorganization; its units were reassigned to the newly established 30th Air Division which took over operation of the SAGE DC-22.

The Army Air Force's 386th Fighter Squadron, flying P-47 Thunderbolts, was activated in 1943 and then inactivated in 1945 at the end of World War II.

The squadron was called to active duty on 1 April 1951 for service during the Korean War and moved to Dow AFB in Bangor, Maine.

The 174th Tactical Fighter Squadron of the 185th augmented by many of the other personnel from the Group, deployed with their F-100s to Phu Cat Air Base, South Vietnam on 11 May 1968.

The ANG firefighter's were only equipped to handle small commuter and Air Force A-7 aircraft, rather than a widebody jet such as the DC-10.

It is widely recognized that the efforts of the Air Guardsmen at the Sioux City Airport contributed to many lives being saved after the crash of UA 232.