Nonstop flight route between Des Moines, Iowa, United States and Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Des Moines International Airport (DSM), Des Moines, Iowa, United States and Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR), Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,897 miles (or 11,100 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 Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort, 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 Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort. 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 closest airport to Des Moines International Airport (DSM) is Ankeny Regional Airport (IKV), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) NNE of DSM.
• Des Moines International Airport is a civil-military public airport three miles southwest of Des Moines, in Polk County, Iowa.
• Des Moines International Airport (DSM) has 2 runways.
• The Des Moines Terminal has 2 concourses.
• 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.
• In 2011, the City of Des Moines transferred control from the city to the Des Moines Airport Authority.
• As of March 2014, Delta Air Lines handled of DSM passengers, followed by United Airlines, American Airlines, US Airways, Southwest Airlines, Allegiant Airlines, and Frontier Airlines.
• 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.

Facts about Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR):

• Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Mazar-i-Sharif airport was built in the 1950s by assistance from the Soviet Union during the Cold War, when the Soviets and the Americans were trying to spread their influence in the Middle East and South Asia.
• The closest airport to Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) is Termez Airport (TMJ), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) N of MZR.
• The furthest airport from Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,749 miles (18,908 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort", another name for MZR is "Mazar-e-Sharif Airport (Mazar-e-Sharif)".
• The airport was heavily used in the 1980s by the Soviet forces from which it launched daily flight missions to hit targets in the Mujahideen controlled territories of the southeast.