MDW to DSM flight delays
Chicago, IL (MDW) Des Moines, IA (DSM) · 306 miles
228 flights · January 2025 – August 2026 · US Bureau of Transportation Statistics
70.98%
Arrived on time
Within 15 minutes of schedule
1.75%
Cancelled
Share of scheduled flights
57 min
When late, late by
Average across delayed arrivals
17 min
Delay per flight
Averaged over every flight flown
What the record says about this route
The two directions do not behave alike. DSM to MDW arrives on time 11.5 points more often than the outbound. Delay accumulates through the flying day, so whichever direction is scheduled later tends to carry the worse record — which is an argument for booking the morning departure if the choice exists.
Only Southwest Airlines flies this route in the published record, so there is no choice to weigh — the route's figures and the airline's are the same figures.
This is a thin route — 228 flights across the whole period. On a route this infrequent a cancellation is far more costly than the rate suggests, because the next departure may not be the same day.
Flights from Chicago to Des Moines run late more often than the average route, though not severely.
Which airline should you fly on this route?
Over January 2025 – August 2026, Southwest Airlines arrived on time most often on MDW to DSM. Flights ran closest to schedule in May and worst in June.
Every airline on MDW to DSM
Ranked by how many flights each one operated. A carrier with fewer than 100 flights in the period is listed but not graded.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 228 | 70.98% | 1.75% | 57 min | D |
Month by month
Share of flights that arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, by month flown.
The return leg
DSM to MDW Des Moines back to Chicago 82.43% on time COther routes from Chicago
Common questions
Are flights from Chicago to Des Moines usually delayed?
70.98% of flights on the MDW to DSM route arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, so roughly 3 in every ten arrived late. That is worse than the average route in this record.
Which airlines fly from Chicago to Des Moines?
Only Southwest Airlines appears in the published record on this route, with 228 flights and 70.98% arriving on time.
How often are MDW to DSM flights cancelled?
1.75% of scheduled flights did not operate — about 18 in every thousand. That is in the normal range.
When MDW to DSM flights are late, how late are they?
About 57 minutes on average across the flights that arrived more than 15 minutes behind schedule.
What these figures do and do not tell you
Everything on this page is counted from the flights that actually operated on MDW to DSM during January 2025 – August 2026, as reported by the airlines to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. "On time" is the federal definition: arriving at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.
A route's record is a description of the past, not a forecast. Weather, air traffic control and the aircraft's earlier flights that day drive most delays, and none of them are predictable from a historical rate. What the record does tell you is whether this route runs late more often than others, and which carrier on it has the better history — which is the part you can actually act on when you book.
Cancellations are counted separately from delays because they are a different problem for a traveller: a late flight still gets you there. How the grade is calculated →