History

On January 11, 1928, the first scheduled air flight out of the Greater Moncton area took place carrying mail and passengers to the Magdalen Islands. Favourable landing conditions were the reason they chose Léger’s Corner (now part of the City of Dieppe) as the final location for the airport.
In 1929, a local private company bought land at Léger’s Corner. Over time, two runways and structures for plane maintenance were constructed.
The Moncton Aero Club was founded in 1929 as well as the International Airways Flying School. In the same year, the airport expanded its air mail service to Prince Edward Island and Montreal.
In 1936, the City of Moncton discussed with Transport Canada the development of an airport suitable for trans-Canada air service. The Léger’s Corner site was unsuitable for expansion, so they chose nearby Lakeburn (now also part of the City of Dieppe) as the new site for the airport.

In March 1940, the Department of National Defence requested authorization from the Department of Transportation to open a service flying training school under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. The school would train war pilots from Commonwealth countries.
A hangar was also constructed at the airport for a repair and overhaul base during the war. These facilities would employ up to 1,000 workers. Many of them occupied the 200 houses built for that purpose in the neighbourhood commonly referred to as “The Patch” near the airport.
During the early 1940s, mail and passenger services were offered to Charlottetown, Montreal, Halifax, Sydney, Saint John, Fredericton and Newfoundland.
The hangar of Trans-Canada Air Lines, one of the first airlines in the region, was the location for the first air terminal. In 1952, a larger hangar was being converted into a modern air terminal, but it was destroyed by fire.
In 1953, part of a new air terminal was constructed.

An expansion in 1964 included an operations building and control tower.
The terminal building was completed in 1976 with the combination of the terminal and the operations building.
During the years, renovations were done to the terminal, including the addition of the international arrivals area constructed in time for the 1999 Francophonie Summit.

In May 2001, the Greater Moncton Airport Authority decided to build a new, state-of-the-art facility. Construction began in early July 2001 and was completed in the early fall of 2002.
On October 19, 2002, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the modern Greater Moncton International Airport terminal building we enjoy today. At the time of the opening in 2002, the airport also obtained its international status.
Construction of the 1,174-metre extension to Runway 06/24 and the addition of the associated partial parallel taxiway and de-icing pad started in 2012 and was completed on time and on budget with the official opening on October 17, 2013.
Completion of the Airport Operations Facility (AOF) in November 2015 resulted in the efficient consolidation of four department activities into the combined facility. The AOF is approximately 34,000 square feet and houses fleet maintenance, airfield maintenance, electricians and Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF). The building was designed with the environment in mind to reduce energy, lighting and water use.
On August 18, 2016, The Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport announced the renaming of the Greater Moncton International Airport to the Greater Moncton Roméo LeBlanc International Airport.