# Des Moines International Airport (DSM)

> Des Moines, US · IATA: DSM · ICAO: KDSM · Medium Airport · Cargo Hub

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `DSM` |
| ICAO | `KDSM` |
| City | Des Moines |
| Country | US |
| Type | Medium Airport |
| Elevation | 292 m |
| Cargo | ✅ |
| GPS | 41.53400, -93.66310 |

## Description

Iowa's busiest passenger airport is not its busiest freight airport — and Des Moines International (DSM) proves the point, with a most recently reported 32.3 million pounds of cargo, roughly 14,700 tonnes. Volumes fell sharply after the U.S. Postal Service ended its FedEx-operated Des Moines air contract in April 2024; tonnage through September 2025 ran about 42% below the prior-year period. FedEx Express and UPS still serve the airport with their own freighters, ground handling is provided by operators including Swissport, and the south quadrant offers more than 100,000 square feet of warehouse space alongside a large cargo apron. For dependable high-volume air freight, Iowa's anchor remains The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID) in Cedar Rapids, while intercontinental lift normally routes through Chicago O'Hare (ORD). DSM's real advantage is road: sitting at the crossroads of Interstates 35 and 80, it keeps trucking feeder runs across the Midwest short. A $445 million replacement terminal was about half built by mid-2026, with its first gates due to open in January 2027, and every four years the airport takes centre stage as candidates fly in for the Iowa Caucus.

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*Freight Academy — Airport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/des-moines-international-airport-dsm](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/des-moines-international-airport-dsm)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/des-moines-international-airport-dsm](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/airports/en/des-moines-international-airport-dsm)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/airports/des-moines-international-airport-dsm/llm-summary*