Aerial view of Montgomery Field taken in 1968 at 14,700 feet. The field was named for John J. Montgomery, an aviation pioneer who in 1884-1886 made the first manned, controlled, heavier-than-air flights in the United States with a glider designed in 1883. The airport opened in 1937 as 'Gibbs Field' as a clay and gravel surface airfield. During World War II, control was assumed by U.S. Air Force, who built three hard runways.