Denver to Des Moines

What the Data Says About DEN to DSM

The Denver to Des Moines corridor (DEN → DSM) covers roughly 589 miles and is served by 21 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 12,367 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 78.7% on-time rate with an average delay of 66.1 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 4,557 flights were recorded on this pairing — 42 cancelled (0.9%) and 8 diverted (0.2%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 21 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 12,367 total flights analyzed, the 78.7% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 66.1-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, Oct 2025 posted the best performance on this corridor at 88% on-time, while Jun 2024 came in at 68% on-time — a 21-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the DEN to DSM route, the combination of a 78.7% on-time rate, 66.1-minute average delay, 0.9% recent cancellation rate, and 21 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.