In July 2016, the National Development and Reform Commission approved the feasibility study report for the Phase III Expansion Project of Guiyang Airport. In November 2016, the Guizhou Provincial Development and Reform Commission and the Civil Aviation Administration of China Southwest Regional Administration jointly approved the preliminary design of the airfield area. In September 2017, the two authorities jointly approved the overall preliminary design and budgetary estimate of the Phase III Project. Construction of Guiyang Airport’s airfield project officially commenced in May 2017.

In ancient times, people said "Roads in Guizhou are far harder to traverse than the treacherous paths of Sichuan". Today, Guiyang has evolved into an eco-friendly, dynamic and dream-building city. Moving forward, guided by the strategy of "Strengthening the Provincial Capital", it will grow into an international metropolis with boundless prospects for Guizhou.

Terminal 3 is designed and constructed to accommodate an annual passenger throughput of 30 million by the target year 2025. It adopts a main building plus single concourse layout, consisting of one main terminal building and one concourse. The planned total construction area of Terminal 3 reaches 167,460 square meters, with a T-shaped planar layout.

The main structure of the terminal adopts frame and steel roof truss systems. It stretches 522 meters from north to south and 360 meters from east to west. The main building stands 38.300 meters high, while the concourse height is 33.298 meters. The design service life of the building is 50 years.