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Route Reliability

Des Moines → Chicago

DSM–ORD · 299 miles · Des Moines International Airport to Chicago O'Hare International Airport

62
A Little Dicey
WanderNerd Reliability Score
74%
Arrive within 15 minutes
19 min
Average arrival delay
3.7%
Cancelled
3,506
Flights in the data

Data through May 2026.

Who flies it best

Ranked by on-time arrivals. Historical results, not predictions.

  1. 1.United Airlines74%1,737 flights
  2. 2.American Airlines73%1,769 flights

What the data says

Morning flights do better here.

DSM–ORD flights departing between 3–6 AM arrived on time 87% of the time, versus 57% between 6–9 PM.

Sunday scaries are real for this one.

DSM–ORD flights arrived on time 78% of the time on Tuesdays. On Sundays: 70%.

Not much between United Airlines and American Airlines.

On this route they all land within 73% to 74% on time. Pick on schedule and price.

Keep a backup plan handy.

This route was cancelled 3.7% of the time. Typical for U.S. flights is around 1–2%.

Best historical flights

Ranked by on-time arrivals, minimum 100 flights. Past performance, not a promise.

Top flights by on-time rate

More flights on this route

The breakdown

On-time by weekday
  • Mon71%(499 flights)
  • Tue78%(486 flights)
  • Wed74%(468 flights)
  • Thu76%(499 flights)
  • Fri71%(485 flights)
  • Sat77%(445 flights)
  • Sun70%(486 flights)
On-time by departure window
  • 12–3 AM—(1 flights)
  • 3–6 AM87%(215 flights)
  • 6–9 AM83%(899 flights)
  • 9 AM–12 PM75%(631 flights)
  • 12–3 PM77%(495 flights)
  • 3–6 PM66%(567 flights)
  • 6–9 PM57%(559 flights)
  • 9 PM–12 AM—(1 flights)
On-time trend by month
81%
May

Jun 72% → May 81% on time

On-time arrival percentage by month
MonthOn-time percentageFlights
June 202572%286
July 202566%280
August 202572%286
September 202582%265
October 202571%294
November 202580%242
December 202562%258
January 202673%215
February 202679%238
March 202669%282
April 202677%355
May 202681%367

Same trip, other airports

Keep nerding

Based on 3,506 historical flights, because apparently we checked. Historical flight data: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, June 2025 – May 2026. Data through May 2026. How we calculate this.