The airport was designed and built during the government of General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla as part of his campaign to modernize the country. Construction began in 1955 and entered in service by December 1959, replacing the aging Techo International Airport, which had been the city's main airport since 1930. Before its inauguration, Soledad International Airport in Barranquilla was the nation's air hub. It was relegated to secondary importance in the country when El Dorado Airport opened. The Sociedad de Mejoras y Ornato de Bogotá was in charge of the external decoration of the airport. On 29 September, after a meeting of the Board of Directors of project, the inauguration date was set for 10 December 1959. Before its completion on 28 October 1959, the airports's manager, René Van Meerbeke, recommended that the airport's name be placed in the central part of the building's façade; however, the name was the subject of much reflection: a short, easy-to-pronounce, terrigenous name was sought that would recall the aboriginal culture that occupied the Bogotá Savannah. Thus, El Dorado was chosen as the most appropriate name for the new terminal. After much discussion among academics led by Professor Luis López de Mesa, Father Félix Restrepo and Alberto Miramón, the name of the airport was determined by decree, written without spaces, forming a single word. On 10 December 1959, the El Dorado International Airport was inaugurated with a spectacular aeronautical exhibition beginning on 6 December which included 16 airplanes, 12 jet-propelled and four additional B-26s that caused the greatest impression on the public. In the archives of the firm of architects and engineers Cuéllar, Serrano, Gómez y Cía., which participated in the construction of the airport, and of the Sociedad de Mejoras y Ornato, there is no record of the company that manufactured the Eldorado sign; neither is the weight of the eight letters known, since they did not need maintenance since they were installed. The airport reached a milestone in 1973 with over three million passengers and nearly 5 million units of luggage processed. Plans began for a second runway at El Dorado with concerns that the explosive growth would lead to over congestion in the future. In 1990, the Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics (Aerocivil) moved to the airport. In 1998, the airport's second runway was inaugurated, which has received much disagreement from the residents of the nearby area of Fontibón, due to the incessant air operations during the day and night. In 2012, in accordance with Law 75 of 1989, which honors the memory of Luis Carlos Galán, Law 1529 of 2012 made official the name change from "El Dorado International Airport" to "Luis Carlos Galán Sarmiento El Dorado International Airport", including the space between "El" and "Dorado", and the name of the politician from Bumán. This name change generated a strong controversy, especially because of the costs associated with it, and because of the non-existent relationship between Galán and the airport. At the end of 2017, all the works corresponding to El Dorado International Airport and the new Terminal 1 were fully handed over. The Terminal 1 grew from 173,000 to 235,000 m2 (square meters), with the potential to serve up to 43 million people per year. Avianca officially opened a hub in Bogotá in December 1998. The carrier flies to 52 destinations from Bogota as of August 2023. It is now one of two hubs operated by the carrier, the other being Avianca El Salvador's hub at El Salvador International Airport. In 1981, Avianca undertook the construction of the Puente Aéreo Terminal inaugurated by President Julio César Turbay Ayala. The name Puente Aéreo means Air Bridge in English. Avianca's original purpose for the terminal was for flights serving Cali, Medellín, Miami and New York.