Dallas/Fort Worth to Des Moines

What the Data Says About DFW to DSM

The Dallas/Fort Worth to Des Moines corridor (DFW → DSM) covers roughly 624 miles and is served by 26 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 7,556 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 74.2% on-time rate with an average delay of 81.7 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,547 flights were recorded on this pairing — 71 cancelled (2.8%) and 5 diverted (0.2%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 26 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 7,556 total flights analyzed, the 74.2% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 81.7-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 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 81% on-time, while Jul 2024 came in at 45% on-time — a 35-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the DFW to DSM route, the combination of a 74.2% on-time rate, 81.7-minute average delay, 2.8% recent cancellation rate, and 26 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.