The Airport was opened at Elmdon, Birmingham on 8th July 1939. Owned and operated by Birmingham City Council as a municipal airport, it was designed to meet the needs of the residents and the industry of the city and its immediate surroundings. Civil aviation ceased on the outbreak of the Second World War when the airport was requisitioned by the Air Ministry. The City of Birmingham took over responsibility again in 1960.After several ownerships transfers, as a result of the Airports Act 1986 introduced a legislation requiring municipal airports with a turnover in excess of £1 million to become Public Airport Companies, on 1st April 1987, the ownership of the Airport transferred to Birmingham International Airport plc, a public limited company owned by the seven West Midlands district councils.