Bismarck/Mandan to Minneapolis

What the Data Says About BIS to MSP

The Bismarck/Mandan to Minneapolis corridor (BIS → MSP) covers roughly 386 miles and is served by 10 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 9,207 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 87.4% on-time rate with an average delay of 101.5 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,888 flights were recorded on this pairing — 16 cancelled (0.6%) and 3 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 10 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 9,207 total flights analyzed, the 87.4% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 101.5-minute average delay applies only to flights that actually ran late, so it is not the average wait across all departures — the majority of flights on this route depart on time under the BTS definition of a delay (15+ minutes past schedule).

Looking at recent months, May 2025 posted the best performance on this corridor at 99% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 58% on-time — a 40-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the BIS to MSP route, the combination of a 87.4% on-time rate, 101.5-minute average delay, 0.6% recent cancellation rate, and 10 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.