There are several airports in the region.
Kansas City Airport and St. Louis Airport are both approximately three hours drive time from Springfield. Springfield Airport is approximately 45 minutes from Branson and would be a good choice if it works for you.
Tulsa Airport is approximately two and a half hours from Branson; the drive to Branson from Tulsa goes through some nice Ozarks country.
There is also a new smaller airport that is located in Bentonville Arkansas and is probably an hour and a half from Branson
http://www.nwara.com/travel/airlines.asp
This one is called Northwest Arkansas Airport and was built because Bentonville is the home of Wal-Mart.
Jim

Jim Blaine, MD
Solo FP
Digital Monitoring Products (DMP)
2500 N. Partnership Blvd
Springfield Missouri 65803