Best time to fly out of Des Moines (DSM)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Des Moines: departures in the Before 6am band left on time 89.7% of the time, against 72.6% in the 6–8pm band. These are historical odds, not forecasts. The records say what happened on this schedule over three years; they know nothing about tomorrow’s thunderstorm.

Data through June 2026 · Bureau of Transportation Statistics

On-time rate by hour and day

On this page, “on time” means a departure that pushed back less than 15 minutes behind its scheduled time — the Bureau of Transportation Statistics definition, and the one airlines are held to.

Share of departures that left on time, by hour band and day of week.
Departure time MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
Before 6am 90 91 91 92 87 86 90
6–8am 89 88 91 87 89 88 88
8–10am 87 88 87 87 87 83 83
10am–12pm 83 84 85 84 80 83 85
12–2pm 80 83 83 80 79 82 82
2–4pm 74 82 80 73 75 76 74
4–6pm 73 78 77 70 74 76 69
6–8pm 72 76 80 68 73 76 68
8–10pm – – – – – – –
10pm–12am – – – – – – –
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at DSM was Before 6am — 89.7% of departures left on time across 4,725 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 72.6%. 6–8am departures from DSM left on time 88.6% of the time across 9,622 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.6% across 4,239. That is a gap of 16 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at DSM

July was the hard month at DSM: 76.2% of departures left on time, across 4,008 flights. September was the easy one at 86.7%. Each month pools three years of that month, so a single bad week does not decide it.

Share of departures that left on time, by calendar month. Best month in green, worst in amber. The hairline sits at the overall rate, 81.8%.
Departure on-time share at DSM by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 76.9% 3,425
February 83.2% 3,243
March 82.4% 3,913
April 86.3% 3,658
May 80.6% 3,854
June 77.2% 3,968
July 76.2% 4,008
August 80.5% 3,965
September 86.7% 3,705
October 86.6% 4,010
November 86.7% 3,741
December 78.6% 3,784

Airlines at DSM

Every airline with at least 100 departures from DSM, busiest first. These are that airline’s departures from this airport only — its record across the country sits on its own page.

Airline Left on time Typical delay Cancelled Departures
American Airlines 76.9% 126 min 2.3% 7,126
United Airlines 86.1% 92 min 1.4% 6,053
Allegiant Air 75.4% 85 min 1.4% 5,627
Southwest Airlines 80.6% 55 min 0.8% 5,376
SkyWest Airlines 82.9% 122 min 2.3% 4,952
Endeavor Air 86.3% 85 min 1.5% 3,854
Delta Air Lines 86.6% 106 min 1.4% 3,555
Envoy Air 83% 69 min 1.9% 2,962
Republic Airways 85.4% 76 min 2.9% 2,928
PSA Airlines 82.8% 117 min 4.4% 2,198
Frontier Airlines 76.1% 87 min 1.2% 643

Endeavor Air (through December 2024) stopped filing before June 2026. Its row covers a shorter run of months than the rest of the table, so its figure is not set against the others anywhere on this page.

What delays out of DSM were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 8,575 flights that departed DSM and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 39.2% put down to airline operations and 32.7% to late-arriving aircraft.

Late-arriving aircraft 32.7% Airline operations 39.2% Air traffic & airport volume 18.2% Severe weather 9.6% Security 0.3%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 32.7%
  • Airline operations 39.2%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 18.2%
  • Severe weather 9.6%
  • Security 0.3%

Late-arriving aircraft is the knock-on category: the plane came in late, so it went out late again. It is why a 7am problem in Newark is still a problem in Denver at dinnertime, and why it is usually the biggest slice on the bar.

If you are connecting through DSM

Of 45,280 scheduled arrivals into DSM, 74.9% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 10,424 arrivals that ran late, 52.9% were no more than 45 minutes behind — which is the difference between a tight connection and a new boarding pass.

Work out a specific layover — pick the airport and the minutes you have, and the tool reads the same arrival records back as a share.

Busiest routes out of DSM

Ranked by flights, with the share that arrived on time at the far end. Where a route carries enough flights for a page of its own the chip goes there; otherwise it goes to the destination airport.

DSM in one number

Des Moines (DSM)

Rank 81 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: Before 6am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 44,441 departures flown

81.8% of departures left on time

Questions about DSM

What is the best time of day to fly out of Des Moines?
Before 6am. Departures in that band left on time 89.7% of the time across 4,725 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 72.6%.
Is the early flight out of DSM really more reliable?
6–8am departures from DSM left on time 88.6% of the time across 9,622 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.6% across 4,239. That is a gap of 16 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of DSM?
July: 76.2% of the departures that flew left on time, with 4,008 scheduled. September was the other end of the year at 86.7%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at DSM?
Delta Air Lines — 86.6% of its 3,555 departures from DSM left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 75.4% over 5,627 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked. Airlines that stopped filing before June 2026 are left out of the ranking — their figures cover a shorter run of months than the rest of the table.
How often are flights cancelled at DSM?
1.8% of scheduled departures were cancelled over July 2023 through June 2026. Cancellations are counted against everything scheduled, not against everything that flew — a rate that looks small still adds up to real people in a rebooking line.