Des Moines International Airport is a commercial service airport 5 miles (8 km) southwest of Des Moines, the capital of

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

. The airport's 2,600 acre campus includes two runways, 46 buildings, 7 parking facilities, and the terminal. Six commercial airlines offer service from DSM (American, Allegiant, Delta, Frontier, Southwest and United). The airport is managed by the Des Moines Airport Authority. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 called it a primary commercial service airport. In 2016 a record 2.48 million passengers used the airport, up 5 percent from 2015. In 2019, DSM served 2.92 million passengers, a record for the airport. The airport hosts the 132nd Wing of the

Iowa Air National Guard The Iowa Air National Guard (IA ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Iowa, United States of America. It is, along with the Iowa Army National Guard, an element of the Iowa National Guard. As state militia units, the units in the Iowa Air ...

History

In the 1920s the Des Moines area had several small airports for general aviation and

airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be t ...

. In 1929, the

Iowa General Assembly The Iowa General Assembly is the legislative branch of the state government of Iowa. Like the federal United States Congress, the General Assembly is a bicameral body, composed of the upper house Iowa Senate and the lower Iowa House of ...

passed a law allowing cities to sell bonds and levy assessments to build municipal airports. Over 80 sites were considered for the Des Moines Airport until a decision was made to build on 160 acres (0.65 km²) of farmland south of the city. Construction of the airport began in 1932 and was completed in 1933. The airport's first passenger

terminal Terminal may refer to: Computing Hardware * Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together * Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line * Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output dev ...

was built shortly after the airport was completed. It was replaced by a new terminal in 1950 that has been expanded and renovated several times. The present concourses were built in 1970, along with the remodeling of the terminal. The airport itself has expanded several times from its original site and now covers 2,625 acres (10.6 km²). The airport was originally governed by the City of Des Moines' Parks Department. A separate Aviation Department was established by the city during the 1960s, and in 1982, a separate Aviation Policy Advisory Board was established. The airport was renamed the Des Moines International Airport in 1986 to acknowledge the presence of a

United States Customs Service The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted c ...

office at the airport. In 2011, the City of Des Moines transferred control from the city to the Des Moines Airport Authority. The city retains ownership of the land but transfers title to all property and equipment to the public authority. In turn, the authority agreed to a 99-year lease on the land. In 2016, a record 2.48 million passengers used the airport, up 5 percent from 2015.

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

records say the airport had 919,990 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 853,596 in 2009 and 932,828 in 2011. In July 2021, the airport announced plans to become a base for

Allegiant Air Allegiant Air (usually shortened to Allegiant) is an ultra low-cost U.S. carrier that operates scheduled and charter flights. It is a major air carrier, the fourteenth-largest commercial airline in North America. Allegiant was founded in 1 ...

Expansion

Interior renovation work began in 2009 on the airport and concluded in 2010. The project, designed by Brooks Borg Skiles AE LLP, included new carpets, paint, gate counters, seating, a new ceiling, signage, and a fire sprinkler system. Also included in the upgrade was a common-use project allowing any airline to use any gate at the airport. A new restroom was also added to the C concourse to allow for future concourse expansion. The airport modernized baggage handling capabilities with expanded processing facilities as well. In addition to work inside the passenger terminal, the airport was building a rental car facility and new parking facilities.

Terminal Replacement

In April 2022, the Des Moines International Airport released their terminal study, calling for a new terminal building to be built, replacing the current one. Older plans capped the airport capacity to 17 gates, 5 more than their current terminal design. The new plan allows for a minimum of 18 gates with a further expansion option of up to 22 gates and 5 additional commercial aircraft parking spaces with the project being built in phases to mitigate costs. The plan also includes US Customs and Boarder Protection for the airport to allow processing of international passengers. In May, the airport asked the surrounding towns and counties to contribute more than $2 million to the airport expansion plans. Work on the new terminal project isn't set to begin until 2024 with an estimated price tag of $769 million.

Facilities

The airport covers 2,625 acres (1,062 ha) at an elevation of 958 feet (292 m). It has two runways: 5/23 is 9,004 by 150 feet (2,744 x 46 m); 13/31 is 9,002 by 150 feet (2,744 x 46 m). In the year ending December 31, 2021, the airport had 66,320 aircraft operations, average 182 per day: 44% airline, 9% air taxi, 44%

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

and 4% military. 105 aircraft were then based at the airport: 63 single-engine, 16 multi-engine, 23 jet, and three

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

. The terminal has two concourses; concourse A with gates A1–A5 (used by

, Southwest Airlines,

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

, and

United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...

) and concourse C, with gates C1–C7 (used by

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

American Eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along w ...

Delta Connection Delta Connection is a regional airline brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to ope ...

, and Frontier Airlines). The airport is home to a maintenance base for

Endeavor Air Endeavor Air is an American regional airline that operates as Delta Connection for Delta Air Lines. The airline was founded as Express Airlines I in 1985 and was renamed Pinnacle Airlines in 2002. In 2012, Pinnacle's parent company filed for Chap ...

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Air National Guard

The

has occupied an area located at the end of the runway since the 1960s and has been home to the 132nd Wing. With the increased need of RPA,

Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ISTAR stands for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employing its sensors and managing t ...

and

cyber warfare Cyberwarfare is the use of cyber attacks against an enemy state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems. Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation or economic wa ...

in the 21st century the U.S. Air Force transitioned the 132nd from a

F-16 Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful ...

fighter unit to an ISR and cyber warfare unit starting in 2013. This ended the 132nd's nearly 70-year history as a fighter wing having previously flown

P-51 Mustangs The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

then the

F-84 Thunderstreak The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version. ...

, F-100 Super Sabre,

A-7 Corsair II The LTV A-7 Corsair II is an American carrier-capable subsonic light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV). The A-7 was developed during the early 1960s as replacement for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Its design w ...

and finally transitioning to the

in the 1980s. Initially it had been considered to transition the wing to the

A-10 Thunderbolt II The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF). In service since 1976, it is named for the Republic ...

in 2014 but it was felt by Iowa legislators that the ISR mission would offer more training and skills to the Airmen of the 132nd which would be applicable in the 21st century and help boost the Iowa economy. The 132nd participated in air combat during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

, and the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

. These mission changes created some debate over the base's status as an aeronautical base, as the Des Moines Airport attempted to void the base's lease and charge 'fair market value', consistent with FAA funding rules at the time. In addition, the removal of the fighters had resulted in the disbanding of the guard's firefighting unit, forcing the airport to privatize firefighting operations which the base had previously provided. The dispute was addressed in the short term by the reassignment of Black Hawk helicopters from Company C, 2nd Battalion, 147th Aviation Regiment,

Iowa Army National Guard The Iowa Army National Guard is a state agency of the State of Iowa, with significant funding from the Federal Government of the United States; and a reserve component of the United States Army. It has dual Federal and State missions. It is em ...

, from Boone, IA to the base, occupying the hangars that formerly held F-16s. This issue was permanently resolved by

President Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

's signature on H.R. 5944, which allowed airports continued access to FAA grant funding by classifying RPA operations as aeronautical. With the addition of the Army National Guard unit to the base, a transition to a joint base status has begun. Eventually, Air Force operations will occupy the area to the west of the main gate, while Army operations will occupy the east.

Statistics

Annual traffic

Top destinations

Accidents and incidents

On December 2, 1978,

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

A N41447 of SMB Stage Line crashed short of the runway while on a cargo flight from

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Airframe icing was a factor in the accident. On November 25, 1985, a

Rockwell Aero Commander The Aero Commander 500 family is a series of light-twin piston-engined and turboprop aircraft originally built by the Aero Design and Engineering Company in the late 1940s, renamed the Aero Commander company in 1950, and a division of Rockwell ...

crashed on approach due to icing and possibly wake turbulence, killing the pilot and six members of the

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the ...

women's track team. On December 1, 2007, a United Express plane carrying 44 passengers slid off a taxiway while taxiing to the runway for takeoff. No one was injured, but the airport was closed for seven hours after the incident because of the winter storm moving through the area. On March 13, 2008,

Flight 4704, an Atlanta-bound Bombardier CRJ-200 operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines, was delayed more than five hours when a mouse was discovered shortly before take-off from DSM. Officials delayed the flight to inspect the plane for any damage that the mouse may have caused. Maintenance crews checked wiring and components on the aircraft. The flight took off at 11:39am. On December 18, 2010, a small red Beechcraft Bonanza crashed while performing an emergency landing at DSM. The Airport Director stated that the small craft had engine problems and turned around for the airport. The aircraft eventually lost the engine and pilot was able to glide to the end of the runway. The aircraft clipped the end of the runway fence with its landing gear, making the nose of the craft dip into the snow. Police and emergency reported only minor injuries.

References

Sources

External links

Des Moines International Airport
official site
Aerial image as of 5 April 2000
from

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

The National Map ''The National Map'' is a collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the effort is to pro ...

'' * * {{Authority control Airports in Iowa Buildings and structures in Des Moines, Iowa Transportation in Des Moines, Iowa Transportation buildings and structures in Polk County, Iowa