[8][9] For this entrepreneurial vision, the airport won the coveted Champion of the Earth award in 2018, the highest environmental honour instituted by the United Nations.

The Kingdom of Cochin allowed the British, who ruled India at the time, to convert the airstrip into a military airport for use by the Indian Navy during World War II.

The Royal Navy chose it as a strategic site for their headquarters in Southern India and as an air station cum landing craft and seaplane base.

[12] The military facility hosted naval fighter planes and was intended to thwart possible Japanese air raids.

[15] The original proposal for the airport outlined an estimated cost of ₹1 billion (US$12 million) and an expected date of commission in 1997.

A body called the Cochin International Airport Society, under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister of Kerala K. Karunakaran, was registered in July 1993 to execute the project.

The construction picked up momentum during this period and Nayanar ensured that the airport project received special attention from the State Government and gave his unstinted support to CIAL.

[citation needed] Work on the third phase was intended to accommodate 5 million passenger movements annually and was started in 2007.

[22] The airside area of the international arrivals and departures blocks were integrated and glass walls were installed to allow for more natural light.

As per the new plans announced by the board of directors in September 2011, the new international terminal would come up on the eastern side of the existing structure.

The two-level terminal will have provisions for 112 check-in counters, with in-line baggage screening facilities, 100 immigration counters, 3,716 square metres (40,000 sq ft) of duty-free shops at departure and arrival lounges, 19 boarding gates, 15 aerobridges, six baggage conveyor belts and fully covered alighting and boarding area.

[32] The current domestic terminal would be converted into an "Executive Pavilion" and would handle VIP and private chartered flights and jets.

[33] Indian government companies like Air India, BPCL and AAI hold an 8.74% stake, while foreign companies like Abu Dhabi based Emke Group, the Oman-based Galfar Group, UAE based Majeed Bukatara Trading holds a 5.42% stake.

[38] With a total built-up area of 55,742 m2 (600,000 sq ft),[38] Terminal 1 has 56 check-in counters, 7 aerobridges and a conveyor belt system to transfer baggage from 12 flights at a time.

[48][citation needed] Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) unveiled India's largest aero lounge on 1 September 2024.

The facility, spanning 50,000 square feet, offers a range of amenities including guest rooms, boardrooms, conference halls, co-working spaces, and a lounge accessible to both passengers and visitors.

The Air Enclave would have a 50m taxi link to the runway at CIAL and would consist of aircraft hangars, technical areas and administrative buildings.

CIAL ASW employs Army-trained sniffer dogs to check for explosives in baggage areas, the only Indian airport to have such a facility.

[93] CIAL has introduced three state-of-the-art ION scanning detectors that can identify small amounts of material, down to nanograms, of explosives.

[97] The airport company also has a high-end robotic security system capable of remote-handling of explosive devices and fire-fighting and hostage situations.

In addition to TCV, the technology also comprises a remote mobile Investigator (RMI)-9WT, which is a multipurpose six-wheel vehicle with removable tracks for step climbing capability.

[99] CIAL has teamed up with the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) to start two schools in aviation education.

The institute has state-of-the-art facilities like X-ray simulators (21), explosive model room, two classrooms with LCD projectors and other training infrastructures.

Library consists of CDs, catering to International Civil Aviation With the establishment of ASTI in Kochi, employees and management personnel from Mangalore, Kozhikode, Coimbatore, Trichy, Madurai and Thiruvananthapuram airports can take training here.

[citation needed] In association with Bharat Airways, it provides scheduled air-taxi services to Sabarimala.

Kurien, to ensure additional revenue sources for the growth of the company and to increase airport traffic through tourism and allied activities.

The Aerotropolis first began in Nedumbassery and nearby villages, aimed to convert into a self-sustainable town, with the airport forming the core element with a residential zone.

[108][109] The plant comprises 46,150 solar panels laid across 18 ha (45 acres) near the international cargo complex, and was installed by the German-based Bosch.

It is capable of generating 50,000 units of electricity daily, and is equipped with a supervisory control and data acquisition system (SCADA), through which remote monitoring is carried out.

[131] In July 2018, the airport was selected for the Champion of the Earth award, the highest environmental honour instituted by the United Nations.