The first commercial airport was in Croydon, just on the edge of the neighbouring borough of Sutton. It wasn’t originally opened for commercial purposes though; the two Croydon airfields (originally known as Bedlington and Waddon) were first used in 1915 for military purposes, to defend Britain against attack by German Zeppelins during World War I. The airfields also had an air traffic control centre, another first for the UK. Croydon didn’t become a publicly used airport until 1920, opening officially on 29 March under the name of Croydon Aerodrome. At this time both the airfields were put together to create a single airport.
When Croydon first opened it still had a road running across it, and a man with a red flag would go out and stop the traffic when a flight was about to land or take off. Later this got more sophisticated and a gate was put up – on the same principle as a level crossing on a railway track.
Croydon soon began offering international flights to European destinations, especially Paris, Amsterdam and later Berlin. The first international airline to use the airport was Imperial Airways, which from 1923 used Croydon as its main base. Imperial Airways then increasingly offered flights, as its name suggests, to countries which were then part of the British Empire, especially to destinations in Africa.
Through the 1920s the airport grew bigger and more buildings were added as the demand for international flights grew. By 1928 the road going across the airfield had finally been closed, and the airport had acquired a modern air traffic control system very different from the original wooden shed. In 1937 British Airways was founded, taking flights to European destinations. Then in 1938 it was merged with Imperial Airways, taking the name of the British Overseas Airways Corporation, and from then on offered international flights to all major destinations.
In 1939 when World War II started, Croydon, like many other airports, was closed for commercial flights, but returned to its origins as an important military centre. It was used as a fighter station in the Battle of Britain in 1940, and in fact the first large air raid on London in 1940 was at Croydon. It suffered severe damage but continued to play a role in the war, and in 1944 was used as the base for the RAF Transport Command , which transported aircraft and also paratroops to military sites.
After the war ended in 1945, it became clear that Croydon would not be suitable for modern air traffic. International flights expanded hugely and aircraft also became much bigger and heavier. Meanwhile London was growing up around Croydon; once almost rural, it was now surrounded by new buildings and so there was no room for the airport to expand to cope with the new demands. The decision to close the airport and to move air traffic to the (then) more rural hub of Heathrow was taken in 1952, but it took some time to complete the move and Croydon actually continued to operate commercial flights until 1959. On 30 September of that year the last public flight left the airport; in the evening of the same day a private flight departed, and at 10.20 pm the airport was closed.
A special flypast was held at Croydon on 27 September 2009 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the airport’s closure.
Today there is still a bit of tarmac left from the original airport, and the terminal building is now known as Airport House. There is a visitor centre inside the control tower, and some historic aircraft are still on display in and around the buildings.
You can read more about the history of Croydon Airport here - you could also contact them for more details such as the names of the original designers or engineers.