Elements of the U.S. Army Special Forces Operational Detachment Alpha 554 ("Texas 08") arrived at the airport soon afterwards, and in the words of the team's report: "...directly negotiate[d] with local commanders for the placement of multinational humanitarian assistance teams to be stationed" at the airport.

[citation needed] In May 2005, responsibility was shifted to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), as part of the Stage 2 transition between the U.S.-led coalition and NATO.

For 45 days a 47-person Tanker Airlift Control Element, primarily deployed from the 621st Contingency Response Wing, McGuire Air Force Base, N.J. prepared the airport for the arrival of 300+ Italian troops as they assumed leadership over ISAF operations in the western regions of Afghanistan.

[6] As a result, the runway was extended and re-paved and a new international terminal, named after Captain Massimo Ranzani, a fallen Italian officer, was opened.

[10] In January 2021, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani renamed the airport after Khwaja Abdullah Ansari.