Lincoln to Minneapolis

What the Data Says About LNK to MSP

The Lincoln to Minneapolis corridor (LNK → MSP) covers roughly 331 miles and is served by 3 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 804 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 90% on-time rate with an average delay of 129.4 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 804 flights were recorded on this pairing — 54 cancelled (6.7%) and 0 diverted (0.0%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 3 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 804 total flights analyzed, the 90% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 129.4-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, Sep 2021 posted the best performance on this corridor at 98% on-time, while Jan 2020 came in at 80% on-time — a 18-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the LNK to MSP route, the combination of a 90% on-time rate, 129.4-minute average delay, 6.7% recent cancellation rate, and 3 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.