The airport was formerly called Panasan Air Force Base, because it is located in Panasan area. The airport was built in 1940 by the Dutch Colonial Government as an emergency airstrip. During the Japanese invasion of the Dutch East Indies, the airport was destroyed by the Dutch to prevent it from being captured intact by the Japanese, but the Japanese military rebuilt it and it serves as a military base for the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. After the Independence of Indonesia, the airport continues to serve as a military airbase, this time for the Indonesian Air Force. The airbase was first used officially for commercial flights on 23 April 1974 served by Garuda Indonesia on the Jakarta-Solo &amp; Solo-Jakarta route with a frequency of 3-times a week. On 25 July 1977, the airport changed its name to Adi Sumarmo Airport, which was taken from the name of Adisumarmo Wiryokusumo, the younger brother of Augustinus Adisucipto. Together, they are known as the pioneer of the Indonesian Air Force.