This  is the only commercial airport in the region consisting of six provinces, namely Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La, Yen Bai, and Hoa Binh.

Earlier on March 27, 2021, the Prime Minister issued a Decision approving the construction of Dien Bien Airport expansion project.

Accordingly, the project involves the construction of a new runway of 2,400 meters long, in a bid to raise the current Dien Bien Airport's capacity to 500,000 passengers a year and enabling it to accommodate A320 and A321 planes.

The upgraded airport is expected to come into operation in the third quarter of 2023.

The expansion project is hoped to give strong boost to socio-economic development particularly in such spheres of tourism, trade and service, and promote cultural values of ethnic minorities in the region. 

The current Dien Bien Airport has only one runway of 1,830 meters long and 30 meters wide together with three airplane parking lots. The airport terminal is capable of handling 300,000 passengers a year.