[4] The airport is located 2.7 nautical miles (5.0 km; 3.1 mi) southeast of the city centre of Estonian capital Tallinn,[2] on the eastern shore of Lake Ülemiste.

After Aeronaut went bankrupt in 1928, air service was continued by Deruluft, which used Nehatu instead, 12 km (7.5 mi) from the centre of Tallinn.

[6] The building of Tallinn Airport started on 16 November 1931, and the first test landing was commenced by captain Reissar piloting Estonian Air Force Avro 594 Avian, tail number 120.

[7] Before World War II, Tallinn Airport had regular connections to abroad by at least Aerotransport (now part of the SAS Group),[6] Deutsche Luft Hansa, LOT and the Finnish company Aero (now Finnair).

During the German occupation, regular international connections were announced on 16 October and already restored on 15 November 1941, when Deutsche Lufthansa and Aero O/Y started the route Helsinki-Tallinn-Riga-Königsberg-Berlin.

The architect of the new terminal was Mihhail Piskov, who took visual inspiration from traditional Estonian housebarns, and the interior designer was Maile Grünberg.

In year 2012 a new aircraft maintenance hangar was opened and a number of passengers passed two million mark the first time in the history of the airport.

[21] The year 2013 saw an introduction of an automatic border control system and a start of construction of a new business aviation hangar complex.

The existing terminal was expanded by 35,000 m2 (376,700 sq ft) and the architects of the project were Jean Marie Bonnard, Pia Tasa and Inge Sirkel-Suviste.

[22] The terminal was expanded in three directions, resulting in 18 new gates, separate lounges for Schengen and non-Schengen passengers, 10 new check-in desks and a new restaurant and cafes.

The extensions constructed at the ends of the terminal building became additional rooms for registering for the flights and for delivering arriving luggage.

[24] Ideon's article also mentioned the fact that Meri himself had shown concern for the condition of the then Soviet-era construction (in one memorable case Meri, having arrived from Japan, led the group of journalists that were expecting him, to the airport's toilets to do the interview there, in order to point out the shoddy condition of the facilities[25]).

The name change was discussed at a board meeting on 29 March 2006,[26] and on the opening of the new terminal on 19 September 2008, Prime Minister Andrus Ansip officially announced the renaming would take place in March 2009[27] In 2011 a new project of cruise turnarounds was launched in cooperation with Tallinn Passenger Port and Happy Cruises.

[35] This meant a significant temporary loss of business for the airport, as Estonian Air had been the largest carrier, accounting for one third of all capacity in 2014.

[36] According to Erik Sakkov, board member of Tallinn Airport, the future plans include expanding the runway by 600–700 metres to serve regular long-haul flights,[37] also building of a brand-new taxiway, new storage facilities, a new point-to-point terminal and expansion of the existing passenger terminal, so it can serve arriving and departing passengers on two different levels.

The project includes the runway lengthening by 720 metres, installation of the ILS Category II equipment, also lengthening of the existing northern taxiway till the end of the expanded runway, constructing of a whole new taxiway and a new apron area on the southern side of the airport, installation of the new perimeter security systems and constructing of an engine test facility and dedicated snow storage and de-icing areas.

[39] Among other benefits the extension would enable planes to fly higher above the city of Tallinn by moving threshold of the runway further from Lake Ülemiste, thus reducing noise level.

The expansion of the airstrip increased the airport's safety area by 41 hectares and five kilometers of new service roads were built.

[42][43][44] On 12 June 2013 the City Administration of Tallinn approved a detailed planning for a 0.91 ha land plot, on which a new 4,430 m2 (47,680 sq ft) maintenance hangar is going to be built.

On 12 April 2012 Tallinn Airport announced, that it will build next year a new terminal with five stands for low-cost airlines, which will be easily removable and extendable.

[58] The Estonian Tourist Board has opened a brand new "Visit Estonia" themed exposition at Gate 5 on 2 October 2013.

[60][61] On 16 August 2013 Tallinn Airport unveiled a gallery and started exhibiting artists' work in the Passenger Terminal.

[62] On 1 September 2013, the airport opened an automatic border control system, that was meant to accelerate procedures for passengers travelling out of the Schengen area.

[63][64] The Nordea Lounge services business class passengers of Air Baltic, Finnair, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa and SAS, as well as Priority Pass and members of the Metropolis loyalty programme.

[66] The museum is located in a small building near the terminal, also a relatively large area nearby will be transformed into open-air exhibition.

[68] It has a surface area of 5,230 m2 (56,300 sq ft), is located right next to the existing General Aviation Terminal and will be servicing aircraft within a distance of up to 3,000 kilometers from Tallinn.

On 6 September 2012 the company opened a new 5,000 m2 (53,820 sq ft) column-free three-bay hangar for Base Maintenance works of narrow-body aircraft, such as Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

[72] With the addition of the new hangar, the maximum annual line maintenance capacity of the company boosted to 72 aircraft from the present 24.

The line "15" temporarily (until the reopening of tram service) provides connections to downtown and Sõjamäe industrial area.

[142][143] Intercity buses of Tallinn - Tartu line operated by Lux Express make a stop at the airport on both directions.