The airport project was launched as a swiftly achievable, high-priority initiative within the CPEC programme in 2014. Former
PM Imran Khan had laid the foundation of GIA on 29 March 2019. This
greenfield airport will include a modern terminal building alongside a cargo terminal, with refrigeration facilities for perishable items, with an initial handling capacity of 30,000 tonnes a year. GIA will have the capacity to accommodate wide-body aircraft including
Airbus A380 and
Boeing 747-8 and narrow-body aircraft such as
ATR-72 and
Boeing 737-900ER. On 1 August 2023, the
National Assembly of Pakistan adopted a resolution to change the name of the New Gwadar International Airport to honor Pakistan's 7th prime minister,
Feroz Khan Noon. The initiative was put forth by
Aliya Kamran,
Rana Qasim Noon, and
Sabir Hussain Qaimkhani during the assembly session. Additionally, the assembly approved another resolution urging the government to rename the Gwadar International Airport in tribute to Feroz Khan Noon. This decision was rooted in recognising his instrumental role in securing
Gwadar for Pakistan through an
agreement with the
Sultanate of Oman during his tenure as Prime Minister. The
Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority awarded the design to build contract of the new airport to the
China Communications Construction Company (CCC). The airport was opened on 14 October 2024 in a ceremony led by Prime Minister
Shehbaz Sharif and Chinese Premier
Li Qiang. The opening was however initially planned for 14 August 2024, to coincide with the
Pakistani Independence Day celebrations, but was delayed due to protests organized by the
BYC. The initial plan for the flight was to happen on 1 January 2025, but was delayed because of
BLA activity. The airport became fully operational on 20 January. In Late January 2025, the first Airbus aircraft, an Airbus A319, registered as A6-RRJ, operated by
Rotana Jet and as a special flight by the UAE, landed at the airport's runway 25. On 3 December 2025, the
Pakistan Airports Authority began construction of a modern
air-cargo building at the airport to manage containerised and oversized cargo. == Runway ==