77% of flights leaving Des Moines (DSM) arrived on time over the past 12 months, right at the national average of 76%. About 52 flights leave DSM on a typical day; 2.5% were cancelled. 78% pushed back from the gate on time, so most of the lateness is already there when the flight leaves the gate.
At a glance
- Best hour to fly: 5 a.m. (85% on time). Worst: 7 p.m. (53%).
- Best month: October (85%). Worst: July (72%).
- Most reliable airline here: Southwest Airlines (82%), vs Allegiant Air at 73%.
- Biggest delay cause: the airlines themselves (40% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: getting worse (81% → 77%).
How late?
The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for flights leaving DSM: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 47% of the time. About 1 in 12 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 39 three hours or more; 2.5% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early77%
- 15–30 min late6.4%
- 30–60 min late5.1%
- 1–2 hours late4.2%
- 2–3 hours late1.9%
- 3+ hours late2.5%
- Diverted0.3%
- Cancelled2.5%
Share of all 18,798 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of DSM
Time of day matters more at DSM than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 5 a.m. arrived on time 85% of the time; at 7 p.m. it was 53%, a 32-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 84% on time against 67% for the evening bank (5–10 p.m.). Early planes usually start the day at the airport, so they haven't had a chance to pick up delays elsewhere. By evening a late inbound aircraft, a crew running out of duty hours or an afternoon thunderstorm can push one late flight into the next. Cancellations cluster too: 7 p.m. departures were cancelled 6.1% of the time, against 2.5% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at DSM was a 6 a.m. departure in October (93% on time); the least, 7 p.m. in July (39%). If you can only move one thing, move the hour. Departure hour usually shifts the odds more than the month does.
Each cell: on-time rate for that departure hour in that calendar month, 2023–2026. Find your travel month, then look along the row for the greenest hour.
Best and worst months
July is the hardest month at DSM, with 72% of flights on time across 2023–2026; October is the best at 85%. Summer (June–August) runs 10 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 7 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in January (4.7% of flights).
Airlines at DSM
American Airlines runs 36% of departures from DSM. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Southwest Airlines was the most reliable (82% on time) and Allegiant Air the least (73%), a 9-point difference. On a route where both fly, that difference is worth more than a small fare gap.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines | 6,685 | 74% | 74% | 3.7% | −9 min |
| United Airlines | 4,102 | 78% | 83% | 2.0% | −6 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 4,018 | 80% | 80% | 2.3% | −13 min |
| Allegiant Air | 2,020 | 73% | 75% | 1.5% | −5 min |
| Southwest Airlines | 1,789 | 82% | 80% | 0.8% | −9 min |
| Frontier Airlines | 184 | 84% | 79% | 0.5% | −12 min |
Why flights are late at DSM
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At DSM, 40% of delay minutes came from the airlines themselves: crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling and baggage. Next is late-arriving aircraft at 33%. Of the 466 cancellations, 70% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 17 minutes, about typical for a large U.S. airport.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 77% of DSM departures were on time, against 81% in the 12 months before, a decline of 3 points. The best recent month was September 2025 (85%); the worst, December 2025 (67%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Saturday, Nov 29, 2025, when 51% of 53 scheduled departures were cancelled. Days like that are usually a major storm, a system outage or a holiday peak hitting bad weather. No average predicts them, so on a stormy forecast, check your airline's travel waivers.
| Date | Departures | Cancelled | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 29, 2025 | 53 | 51% | 0% |
| Nov 30, 2025 | 62 | 44% | 3% |
| Dec 28, 2025 | 54 | 35% | 30% |
| Mar 15, 2026 | 52 | 35% | 44% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 58 | 29% | 31% |
| Jan 27, 2026 | 39 | 23% | 46% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 48 | 23% | 63% |
| Jan 25, 2026 | 47 | 21% | 43% |
| Jan 24, 2026 | 39 | 18% | 44% |
| Nov 10, 2025 | 58 | 16% | 50% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from DSM, each airline's final departure was cancelled 3.1% of the time, against 2.5% for its earlier flights, about the same. 2.7% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was American Airlines to Chicago (7.4% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD Chicago | American Airlines | 8:05 p.m. | 7.4% | 4.4% | 54% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 7:02 p.m. | 6.0% | 3.9% | 65% |
| ORD Chicago | United Airlines | 6:50 p.m. | 5.5% | 4.1% | 54% |
| DCA Washington | American Airlines | 2:29 p.m. | 5.4% | 3.9% | 65% |
| ATL Atlanta | Delta Air Lines | 6:37 p.m. | 3.6% | 1.9% | 81% |
| CLT Charlotte | American Airlines | 1:41 p.m. | 3.4% | 2.0% | 74% |
| MSP Minneapolis | Delta Air Lines | 5:56 p.m. | 1.7% | 2.8% | 75% |
| DTW Detroit | Delta Air Lines | 5:32 p.m. | 1.1% | 3.1% | 74% |
| PHX Phoenix | American Airlines | 2:26 p.m. | 1.1% | 2.5% | 77% |
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 5:17 p.m. | 0.0% | 2.7% | 68% |
| IAH Houston | United Airlines | 3:01 p.m. | 1.4% | 1.1% | 80% |
| DEN Denver | Southwest Airlines | 6:10 p.m. | 0.0% | 1.0% | 64% |
Each airline's last scheduled departure of the day on a route, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Riskiest first.
Tips for flying out of DSM
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At DSM the 5 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in July? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Choosing between airlines? Southwest Airlines has the better record here.
- Delayed already? Most delays at DSM come from the airlines themselves. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from DSM
Where you're going matters too. From DSM, the most reliable busy route was to Atlanta (ATL, 86% on time) and the least reliable to Chicago (ORD, 70%). Flights into congested airports inherit their delays: an air traffic program at the destination holds planes on the ground here.
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD Chicago | 3,510 | 70% | 4.0% | −4 min |
| DFW Dallas | 1,440 | 71% | 3.6% | −7 min |
| LGA New York | 720 | 72% | 3.9% | −11 min |
| DCA Washington | 701 | 73% | 6.0% | −10 min |
| LAS Las Vegas | 595 | 78% | 0.2% | −6 min |
| DTW Detroit | 1,015 | 79% | 1.9% | −12 min |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,056 | 79% | 1.5% | −7 min |
| MSP Minneapolis | 1,254 | 80% | 1.5% | −9 min |
| CLT Charlotte | 813 | 80% | 3.3% | −13 min |
| DEN Denver | 2,327 | 83% | 0.6% | −9 min |
| IAH Houston | 727 | 84% | 1.4% | −10 min |
| ATL Atlanta | 1,290 | 86% | 2.4% | −18 min |
Flights into DSM
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Des Moines, least reliable first. The weakest is from New York (61% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| LGA New York | 719 | 61% | 5.1% |
| DFW Dallas | 1,438 | 64% | 3.4% |
| DCA Washington | 700 | 67% | 6.4% |
| ORD Chicago | 3,513 | 68% | 3.6% |
| CLT Charlotte | 813 | 69% | 3.3% |
| DTW Detroit | 1,015 | 71% | 1.9% |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,059 | 75% | 1.5% |
| MSP Minneapolis | 1,254 | 77% | 1.5% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 595 | 77% | 0.3% |
| DEN Denver | 2,327 | 79% | 0.6% |
| IAH Houston | 727 | 81% | 1.0% |
| ATL Atlanta | 1,290 | 82% | 2.4% |
Questions about DSM delays
What is the best time to fly out of DSM?
Flights scheduled at 5 a.m.: over the past year 85% of DSM departures at that hour arrived on time, against 53% at 7 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at DSM?
July (72% on time). October is the best month (85%).
Which airline is most on time at DSM?
Southwest Airlines: 82% of its DSM departures arrived on time over the past year. Allegiant Air had the weakest record at 73%.
Why are flights delayed at DSM?
The biggest cause was the airlines themselves (40% of delay minutes): crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling and baggage. Then late-arriving aircraft (33%).
How often are flights cancelled at DSM?
2.5% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 4.7%.
Hours are scheduled local departure times. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes late at the destination; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Method.