PlainFlights

Airport · DSM · Des Moines, Iowa

Des Moines, IA

According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Des Moines, IA (DSM) ranks #81 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Des Moines, IA posts below-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport.

Data updated 2026-06-13

82.6%
On-time
Top 59%
on-time, US airports
82 min
Delay when late
1.15%
Cancelled
#81 of 382
Corpus placement
View watchlist

Get DSM on-time updates (RSS)

Tools for DSM

Compare DSM to another hub, filter routes, or browse airline stats without leaving this profile.

Airport lookup

Compare airports

Route finder

Airline & season filters

DSM on-time rate vs. the national average

Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.

0%100%U.S. average79%82.6%

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Carrier. Total delay minutes: 1,194,480.

Late Aircraft 31.9% (380,660 min)
Carrier 41.0% (489,155 min)
NAS (National Aviation System) 19.0% (227,188 min)
Weather 7.9% (94,637 min)
Security 0.2% (2,840 min)

DSM - seasonal on-time pattern

Best: September (94.5%) · worst: December (90.3%)

90%91%92%93%94%95% JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec 90.3%

DSM - on-time rate by year

2020–2025, year-over-year trend.

90%92%94%96%98% 202020212022202320242025 96% 91% ▼ -5.2%

DSM - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)

Average taxi-out 16.1 min · taxi-in 6.6 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).

10 min15 min20 min25 min Jan 24Dec 25 22 min 21.2 min ▼ -3.6%

DSM's average taxi-out (16.1 min) sits near the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). Month-to-month, it swings from 14.0 min (April 2024) to 22.0 min (January 2024).

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for Des Moines, IA.

Cancellation Rate

1.15%

1,950 of 169,476 flights

Diversion Rate

0.10%

168 of 169,476 flights

Delay Rate

17.4%

29,533 of 169,476 flights

Top Routes from DSM

Busiest routes to and from Des Moines, IA.

Filter routes

Route Flights On-Time Distance
ORD (Chicago) → DSM (Des Moines) 12,645 79.6% 299 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → ORD (Chicago) 12,641 82.9% 299 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → DEN (Denver) 12,369 82.5% 589 mi
DEN (Denver) → DSM (Des Moines) 12,367 78.7% 589 mi
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → DSM (Des Moines) 7,556 74.2% 624 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) 7,556 77.9% 624 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → ATL (Atlanta) 6,506 89.5% 743 mi
ATL (Atlanta) → DSM (Des Moines) 6,504 88.6% 743 mi
MSP (Minneapolis) → DSM (Des Moines) 5,520 87.1% 232 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → MSP (Minneapolis) 5,518 89.1% 232 mi
CLT (Charlotte) → DSM (Des Moines) 4,931 79.8% 815 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → CLT (Charlotte) 4,929 83.2% 815 mi
PHX (Phoenix) → DSM (Des Moines) 4,845 81.9% 1,149 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → PHX (Phoenix) 4,841 83.9% 1,149 mi
DTW (Detroit) → DSM (Des Moines) 4,242 89.7% 534 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → DTW (Detroit) 4,240 91.2% 534 mi
STL (St. Louis) → DSM (Des Moines) 3,689 81.5% 259 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → STL (St. Louis) 3,685 89.2% 259 mi
DSM (Des Moines) → DCA (Washington) 3,549 82.1% 897 mi
DCA (Washington) → DSM (Des Moines) 3,516 78.4% 897 mi

Nationwide peers by on-time rate & flight volume

Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Des Moines, IA, both outside Iowa so the neighborhoods are not same-state geography. Axes stay disjoint: volume peers exclude the on-time peer set. Same-state compare stays below.

Similar on-time rate

Nearest out-of-state BTS on-time rate (this airport: 82.6%).

Anchorage, AK

Anchorage, AK

82.6% on-time 214,443 flights

Huntsville, AL

Huntsville, AL

82.6% on-time 91,787 flights

Fargo, ND

Fargo, ND

82.6% on-time 74,155 flights

Dillingham, AK

Dillingham, AK

82.6% on-time 2,866 flights

Similar flight volume

Nearest out-of-state total flights (this airport: 169,476).

Myrtle Beach, SC

Myrtle Beach, SC

171,781 flights 82.1% on-time

Long Beach, CA

Long Beach, CA

174,755 flights 83.2% on-time

Lihue, HI

Lihue, HI

162,570 flights 86.7% on-time

Kona, HI

Kona, HI

177,017 flights 86.3% on-time

Other Airports in Iowa

Compare performance with other Iowa airports.

CID 82.2%

Cedar Rapids/Iowa City, IA

Cedar Rapids/Iowa City · 91,140 flights
SUX 81.8%

Sioux City, IA

Sioux City · 9,052 flights
MCW 83.4%

Mason City, IA

Mason City · 5,851 flights
FOD 83.4%

Fort Dodge, IA

Fort Dodge · 5,848 flights
ALO 87.7%

Waterloo, IA

Waterloo · 4,350 flights
DBQ 89.5%

Dubuque, IA

Dubuque · 3,012 flights

DSM delay-share reading

The standout signal at Des Moines, IA is the delay mix: Carrier owns 41.0% of 1,194,480 delay minutes across 169,476 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 82.6% (3.6 pts above the 79% national average), with 29,533 delayed and 1,950 cancelled (1.15%).

Delay minutes concentrate in Carrier (31.9% late-aircraft, 41.0% carrier, 19.0% NAS, 7.9% weather, 0.2% security). As a busy airport, that mix matters more for connection planning than for a thin schedule.

On the multi-year calendar, DSM is strongest in September (94.5% on-time) and weakest in December (90.3%), a 4.2-point swing. Volume peaks in March (~2,559 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to ORD (Chicago) at 79.6% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.

Statewide aggregates for Iowa: Iowa flight data.

Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data (2020–2025). Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods. On-time rates exclude cancelled and diverted flights.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using DSM's data

DSM's on-time book is mid-pack; month and delay-cause mix move more than the headline rate.

  • Check the busiest route from DSM before you book a connection. See top routes
  • Travel in September rather than December if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
  • Gate-to-wheels taxi-out averages 16.1 min here; check the monthly series before a tight connection. Taxi times

On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.

Data sourced from U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) On-Time Performance data. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFlights

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025

Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. Airport figures are computed directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.