Plans for the construction of the airport were first proposed in 1969. The Cibao International Airport Corporation was created on 29 March 1978, with the cooperation of José Armando Bermúdez (president), Víctor Espaillat, Manuel Arsenio Ureña, Dr. José Augusto Imbert, Mario Cáceres and Ing. Carlos S. Fondeur, who acquired the land necessary to build the new airport. The construction of the airport began on 15 February 2000, and was finished in 2002. The airport was inaugurated on 18 March 2002, with two direct flights to San Juan operated by American Eagle. In May 2002, Aeromar Líneas Aéreas Dominicanas made the first direct flight from Santiago to JFK Airport in New York. Later that month American Airlines and North American Airlines began direct flights to New York, Miami, and San Juan. A few months later Continental Airlines began direct flights from Newark. This was followed by direct service by JetBlue Airways and Delta Air Lines, both from New York. In 2003, Aeromar Líneas Aéreas Dominicanas stopped their flights into Santiago after the airline ceased operations. By the end of 2005, the airport's operator began one of the biggest expansions for this airport. They expanded the customs hall and rebuilt the west and east sides of the terminal. The terminal saw the addition of a second floor. This expansion was finalized in 2006. The runway's 400-meter (1,300 ft) expansion is currently in folders, but there is no scheduled date to begin or conclude this expansion yet. In April 2008, Cibao International became the first airport in the country to eliminate fees for private planes, making it possible to increase tourism in the region. On 27 November 2021, the works of infrastructure expansion started with presence of the president Luis Abinader. By 2025, the airpot move 2.2 million pasagers yearly. By 2026, Air Europe increaselights frequency from two to three weekly flights.