The first regular passenger flight from Tashkent to Almaty opened in May 1924. In the 1930s, the first airport building was constructed here, though it has not survived to the present day.

In October 1955, regular flights on the Tashkent–Moscow route began using Il-14 aircraft. Just a year later, the first jet Tu-104 took to the skies, and from 1959, Il-18 aircraft flew on many routes. In 1958, Tashkent Airport received the status of a Class I international airport.

In 1956, a new two-story terminal building designed by architects I. Merpport and M. Kondakova appeared. It stood out with its expressive appearance and became one of the city’s architectural calling cards.

Over time, the old building no longer met the needs of rapidly developing civil aviation. A decision was made to build a new terminal, with the project developed by specialists from Moscow’s “Aeroproyekt” institute in collaboration with Tashkent architects. The main goal of the new project was to create maximum comfort for passengers.

The new airport building opened in 1976. Architects Ye. Yermolayev, L. Ivanov, and I. Khusnutdinov implemented the principles of functional minimalism: passenger flows were separated by levels — arrivals on the first floor, departures on the second. For the convenience of departing passengers, an elevated roadway led directly to the second floor; it was shaded by an overhanging canopy and simultaneously served as a shelter for the lower level. To the left of the main building was a restaurant connected to the terminal by a covered gallery.

In 2001, Tashkent’s airport complex underwent a complete reconstruction and became one of the largest in the region. It was equipped with modern navigation and service systems, enabling it to handle nearly all types of aircraft worldwide.

In 2013, a domestic flights terminal opened with a separate entrance from the ring road. This terminal is connected to the international airport by an internal highway.

In January 2017, Tashkent International Airport was named after the first President of Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov.

In 2018, the old terminal building was demolished, and a modern terminal for arriving passengers was built in its place.

Between 2021 and 2024, the airport underwent another large-scale reconstruction. The new facade was extended toward the parking area, and a spacious, light-filled foyer with service zones and shops appeared. Today, in the updated appearance of the airport, the outlines of that very “new building” from the 1970s can barely be discerned.