Samarkand International Airport is the first airport in the modern history of Uzbekistan. The initial facilities for the airport were constructed in 1967, including a runway, a small terminal, and basic infrastructure. In its early years, the airport mostly operated domestic charter flights, until the first scheduled flights began in the 1980s. The national airline Uzbekistan Airways started operating flights to the airport after its establishment in 1992, contributing to an increase in passenger traffic.

A new passenger terminal was built in 2009, taxiways were reconstructed, a new air traffic control building was constructed, and modern aeronautical navigation equipment was installed.

Renovation

On 27 November 2018, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree aimed at improving and modernizing the country's civil aviation sector. In 2020, a comprehensive renovation and construction of a new terminal began. The Uzbek Uzbekistan EPC company Enter Engineering carried out the project based on a design by the Turkish design firm Kiklop Construction. The new terminal officially opened on 18 March 2022.

To enhance Uzbekistan's tourism potential, fully use the capabilities of Samarkand International Airport, and foster competition in the aviation market, an open skies regime was introduced at Samarkand International Airport on 1 October 2022.

In 2022, nine new airlines, including five foreign carriers, began operating flights to Samarkand. Among them were Jazeera Airways, Pobeda, Panorama Airways, China Southern, Silk Avia, Humo Air, Centrum Air, SunExpress, and UVT Aero.

In 2023, the airport served 1.01 million passengers. It is one of the busiest airports in Uzbekistan. International flights accounted for 918,500 passengers (a 106.4% increase), while domestic routes handled 92,300 passengers (91.2% growth). The most popular regional destination was Tashkent.

In 2024, Samarkand International Airport set a new record with over 1.38 million passengers, up 37% from 2023. Growth was driven by international routes, which saw a 43% increase and over 1.31 million passengers. New routes launched in 2024 included Xi’an (China), Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt), Turkistan (Kazakhstan), and Tyumen, Nizhny Novgorod, Irkutsk (Russia).