Nonstop flight route between Des Moines, Iowa, United States and Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Des Moines International Airport (DSM), Des Moines, Iowa, United States and RAF Ascension (ASI), Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,036 miles (or 9,714 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Des Moines International Airport and RAF Ascension, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Des Moines International Airport and RAF Ascension. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Des Moines International Airport (DSM):

• The Des Moines Terminal has 2 concourses.
• Interior renovation work began in 2009 on the airport and concluded in 2010.
• The closest airport to Des Moines International Airport (DSM) is Ankeny Regional Airport (IKV), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) NNE of DSM.
• The furthest airport from Des Moines International Airport (DSM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,789 miles (17,363 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• During the 1920s the Des Moines area had several small private airports for general aviation and airmail.
• Because of Des Moines International Airport's relatively low elevation of 958 feet, planes can take off or land at Des Moines International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• Des Moines International Airport (DSM) has 2 runways.
• Des Moines International Airport is a civil-military public airport three miles southwest of Des Moines, in Polk County, Iowa.

Facts about RAF Ascension (ASI):

• The NASA Tracking Station at Devil's Ashpit and the Cable & Wireless Earth Station at Donkey Plain were built in the "mid-sixties" for space operations and communications, including the latter's use for transmitting "microwave borne data via the Early Bird Satellite back to the NASA facility at Andover, Maine.
• The furthest airport from RAF Ascension (ASI) is Ujae Airport (UJE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Ascension (meaning RAF Ascension is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ujae Airport), and is located 12,370 miles (19,907 kilometers) away in Ujae Atoll, Marshall Islands.
• In addition to being known as "RAF Ascension", another name for ASI is "Wideawake Airbase/Field".
• The closest airport to RAF Ascension (ASI) is Sasstown Airport (SAZ), which is located 965 miles (1,553 kilometers) NNE of ASI.