Historical on-time performance
Des Moines to Denver
589 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on DSM–DEN arrive on time 83% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate83%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay30 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled0.7%of scheduled flights
based on 2,148 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- SkyWest AirlinesbestOn-time90%Medianon timep9010 minCancel0.7%Flights934
- Southwest AirlinesOn-time84%Medianon timep9025 minCancel0.6%Flights527
- United AirlinesOn-time72%Medianon timep9075 minCancel0.9%Flights687
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline30%
- Weather11%
- Air traffic (NAS)38%
- Late aircraft20%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Air traffic (NAS).
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline25%
- Weather63%
- Air traffic (NAS)13%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 16 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly DSM → DEN
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-06 .. 2026-05).
Best time of day
Middays are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 87% on time.
- Middays87% on time · p90 15 min · 1,520 flights
- Mornings85% on time · p90 20 min · 3,278 flights
- Afternoons72% on time · p90 45 min · 599 flights
- Evenings69% on time · p90 90 min · 1,364 flights
- Overnights58% on time · p90 95 min · 183 flights · limited
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 77% to 83% on time.
- Wednesdays83% on time · p90 25 min · 983 flights
- Tuesdays81% on time · p90 35 min · 956 flights
- Sundays81% on time · p90 35 min · 983 flights
- Saturdays81% on time · p90 35 min · 939 flights
- Thursdays80% on time · p90 35 min · 1,004 flights
- Mondays80% on time · p90 30 min · 1,035 flights
- Fridays77% on time · p90 50 min · 1,044 flights
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