Airport Management

Safford's original airport was the Wickersham Airport, located 3 miles south of Safford, where the fairgrounds are today. Safford Regional Airport as we know it was built by the Army Corps of Engineers as a military auxiliary field for pilot training during the Second World War. On November 11, 1941, a 20-year lease for the airport site was given to the City of Safford by the U.S. Government. By March 8, 1946, the airport site was transferred to the City of Safford permanently.

The original Frontier Airlines began service to Safford in 1950 with Douglas DC-3 aircraft. Safford was a stop on a route between Phoenix and El Paso which also made stops at Globe/Miami and Clifton/Morenci, Arizona as well as at Lordsburg, Deming, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. By 1956 the route was redirected from Phoenix to Albuquerque stopping in Tucson, Safford, Clifton, and Silver City in New Mexico. Frontier's service ended in 1964. The airport was served again briefly in 1974 and 1975 by Cochise Airlines with flights to Tucson and Phoenix using a Cessna 402 aircraft.

Since its transfer to the City of Safford, the airport has primary served General Aviation Aircraft, including private aircraft, charters, wildfire fighting aircraft, law enforcement, and military aircraft.

On February 26th, 2024, the Safford City Council renamed the Airport in honor of Mr. Duane Spalsbury, a local resident and World War II fighter pilot.