Nonstop flight route between Southend, Essex (near London) United Kingdom and Des Moines, Iowa, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Southend Airport (SEN), Southend, Essex (near London) United Kingdom and Des Moines International Airport (DSM), Des Moines, Iowa, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,218 miles (or 6,788 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 London Southend Airport and Des Moines 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 London Southend Airport and Des Moines 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 London Southend Airport (SEN):

• Southend Airport handles mainly scheduled passenger, charter and business flights, cargo flights, pilot training, and recreational flying.
• Because of London Southend Airport's relatively low elevation of 55 feet, planes can take off or land at London Southend 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.
• Holland Aero Lines operated a Rotterdam to Southend service with a GAF Nomad aircraft between 4 February 1985 and December 1986.
• EasyJet began operating services by opening a base at Southend in April 2012.
• BKS commenced airline operations from Southend Airport in October 1951 as BKS Aero Charter with a Douglas DC-3.
• London Southend Airport (SEN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airfield was established by the Royal Flying Corps during World War I.
• A four-star Holiday Inn hotel located adjacent to the airport entrance opened on 1 October 2012.
• During the 1960s, Southend was the third-busiest airport in the United Kingdom.
• London Southend Airport handled 969,912 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from London Southend Airport (SEN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,885 miles (19,126 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to London Southend Airport (SEN) is Rochester Airport (RCS), which is located only 17 miles (28 kilometers) SSW of SEN.
• Companies located at and around the airport employ over 1,000 skilled workers, providing services such as engineering and maintenance work on airliners, including re-spraying, refurbishment, upgrades to avionics, manufacture of aircraft seats and the installation of new or hush-kitted engines.

Facts about Des Moines International Airport (DSM):

• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to work inside the passenger terminal, the airport is building a rental car facility and new parking facilities.
• 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.
• 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 (DSM) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• The airport hosts the Des Moines Air National Guard Base and 132d Fighter Wing of the Iowa Air National Guard.
• Des Moines International Airport is a civil-military public airport three miles southwest of Des Moines, in Polk County, Iowa.