Since Peshawar is the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, it provides world connections for the majority of the northwest region of the country and adjoining areas of Afghanistan.

Since the province has a large Afghan Pashtun community residing within KPK, Afghanistan flights have always been on the rise.

The airport traces its origins to 1927 when there was a small airfield that catered to much of the British Empire and Imperial Airways aircraft that were either travelling onwards to the east (e.g. to China and Malaysia/Singapore) or west (e.g. Europe and America).

[3] In January 2008 the provincial government met to discuss the expansion work needed to upgrade the quality of the aircraft in terms of facilities, terminal modernisation and cargo growth.

[4] In June 2008 the Deputy Director General of the CAA, Air Vice Marshal Sajid Habib, said that five billion rupees have been allocated to expand and develop Peshawar airport.

The airport has some facilities to handle the basic needs of travellers, such as telephone booths (domestic/international), currency exchange, automatic teller machines (ATMs), Internet stations (powered by Wateen), information counters, gifts and souvenir shops, snack shops, rental car services, and a post office.