The airport was built on the site of an old Air Naval Base, which operated until 1941, when its jurisdiction changed to the Brazilian Air Force. Between 1927 and 1932, the then known as Campeche Field was also used by the French aviators of the Compagnie Générale Aéropostale for its operations in Florianópolis. Among them were Jean Mermoz, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet. Between 1942 and 1945, the runway 03/21, apron, control tower and passenger terminal were built. At the same time, some facilities of the Florianópolis Air Force Base were built and made operational. In the period between 1952 and 1954, the passenger terminal was rebuilt and was operational until 1976 when a brand-new terminal building and apron were opened. The old facility is today the cargo terminal. The new terminal was further enlarged in 1988 and 2000, reaching the present 8,703 m2. In 1978, the runway 14/32 was opened allowing a great increase in traffic. In 1995, the airport was upgraded to international category and started receiving particularly seasonal and charter flights from Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. On March 16, 2017, Flughafen Zürich AG was granted the concession to operate and expand the airport, owning 100% of it. On January 15, 2018, the new concessionaire began construction of a new terminal with 14 new gates - 3 international and 11 domestic. The cost of the project was BRL 570 million. The new terminal, located on the opposite side of the main runway from the old one, was officially opened on September 28, 2019. The main runway was also extended by 100 metres (330 ft), to 2,400 metres (7,900 ft). Operations using the new terminal started on October 1, 2019. In September 2024, TAP Air Portugal began nonstop service to Lisbon, giving Florianópolis its first flight to Europe.