Minneapolis to Bismarck/Mandan

What the Data Says About MSP to BIS

The Minneapolis to Bismarck/Mandan corridor (MSP → BIS) covers roughly 386 miles and is served by 10 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 9,208 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 86.1% on-time rate with an average delay of 79.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,888 flights were recorded on this pairing — 15 cancelled (0.5%) and 6 diverted (0.2%). 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 9,208 total flights analyzed, the 86.1% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 79.3-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 97% on-time, while Jun 2024 came in at 62% on-time — a 34-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the MSP to BIS route, the combination of a 86.1% on-time rate, 79.3-minute average delay, 0.5% recent cancellation rate, and 10 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.