Nonstop flight route between Des Moines, Iowa, United States and Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Des Moines International Airport (DSM), Des Moines, Iowa, United States and Glasgow International Airport (GLA), Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,892 miles (or 6,263 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 Glasgow International Airport, 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 Glasgow International Airport. 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 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.
• 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.
• During the 1920s the Des Moines area had several small private airports for general aviation and airmail.
• Des Moines International Airport (DSM) has 2 runways.
• In 2012, the airport had 1,038,484 enplanementsFederal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 919,990 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 853,596 in 2009 and 932,828 in 2011.
• On March 13, 2008, an Atlanta-bound ASA flight was delayed more than five hours when a mouse was discovered shortly before take-off from DSM.
• 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.

Facts about Glasgow International Airport (GLA):

• Glasgow International Airport handled 7,363,764 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Glasgow International Airport", another name for GLA is "Port-adhair Eadar-nàiseanta Ghlaschu".
• The closest airport to Glasgow International Airport (GLA) is Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SSW of GLA.
• The West Pier, built as part of the 1989 extension project, is the principal international and long haul departure point, with some gates capable of handling Boeing 747 aircraft.
• A dedicated international departure lounge and pier was added at the western side of the building, leaving the facility with a total of 38 gates, bringing its capacity up to nine million passengers per year.
• Icelandair temporarily moved its base of operations from Keflavík International Airport to Glasgow due to the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull.
• In the 1960s, Glasgow Corporation decided that a new airport for the city was required.
• The furthest airport from Glasgow International Airport (GLA) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,739 miles (18,892 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Glasgow International Airport (GLA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Glasgow International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Glasgow 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.
• Further growth is hampered by the airport's location, which is constrained by the M8 motorway to the south, the town of Renfrew to the east and the River Clyde to the north.