Nonstop flight route between Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands and Des Moines, Iowa, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SPN to DSM:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- SPN Airport Information
- DSM Airport Information
- Facts about SPN
- Facts about DSM
- Map of Nearest Airports to SPN
- List of Nearest Airports to SPN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPN
- List of Furthest Airports from SPN
- Map of Nearest Airports to DSM
- List of Nearest Airports to DSM
- Map of Furthest Airports from DSM
- List of Furthest Airports from DSM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Saipan International Airport (SPN), Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands and Des Moines International Airport (DSM), Des Moines, Iowa, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,995 miles (or 11,258 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 Saipan International 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 Saipan International 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:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SPN / PGSN |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 15°7'8"N by 145°43'45"E |
Operator/Owner: | Commonwealth Ports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 215 feet (66 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SPN |
More Information: | SPN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | DSM / KDSM |
Airport Name: | Des Moines International Airport |
Location: | Des Moines, Iowa, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°32'2"N by 93°39'47"W |
Area Served: | Des Moines, Iowa |
Operator/Owner: | City of Des Moines |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 958 feet (292 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from DSM |
More Information: | DSM Maps & Info |
Facts about Saipan International Airport (SPN):
- SPN was a sugarcane field before the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service constructed a temporary landing field on the site in 1933.
- Once in American hands, Isely Field was expanded considerably to support Twentieth Air Force B-29 Superfortress operations.
- The furthest airport from Saipan International Airport (SPN) is Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho) (SSA), which is nearly antipodal to Saipan International Airport (meaning Saipan International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho)), and is located 12,125 miles (19,514 kilometers) away in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
- In addition to being known as "Saipan International Airport", other names for SPN include "Francisco C. Ada Airport" and "GSN".
- The closest airport to Saipan International Airport (SPN) is Tinian International Airport (TIQ), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SW of SPN.
- Japanese tourists began visiting Saipan in large numbers during the 1970s.
- The airfield was liberated by the United States Army 27th Infantry Division on June 18, 1944 during the Battle of Saipan.
- Saipan International Airport (SPN) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Saipan International Airport's relatively low elevation of 215 feet, planes can take off or land at Saipan 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 Des Moines International Airport (DSM):
- Interior renovation work began in 2009 on the airport and concluded in 2010.
- On December 18, 2010, a small red Beechcraft Bonanza crashed while performing an emergency landing at 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.
- 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.
- This airport is in in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which called it a primary commercial service airport.
- 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.
- 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 Des Moines Terminal has 2 concourses.
- Des Moines International Airport covers 2,625 acres at an elevation of 958 feet above mean sea level.