The airport opened in 1967 as the Spaceland Airport, a name related to the Johnson Space Center, located about 4 miles north of the airport.[3]
A businessperson named James R. Bath purchased the airport on behalf of Salem bin Laden in 1977. Bath received a 5 percent interest in the companies that own and operate the airport.[5] Salem bin Laden owned the airport for six years before his death in 1988.[6] After Salem bin Laden died, the airport, now owned by his estate, was for sale.[6][7]
The airport was scheduled to close on April 1, 2002. A coalition of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and some local pilots created a campaign asking for the City of League City to acquire the airport from its owner.[8] The airport's land was sold and the land became a string of houses along Texas State Highway 96.[9] The group of houses are part of a 2,000-house community called Tuscan Lakes.[10]