Flights Chicago → Des Moines
ORD → DSM
Route overview
The flight route from Chicago to Des Moines operates with a mix of aircraft including Embraer RJ140, Embraer RJ145, Embraer 175, Airbus A319, and Boeing 737-700, serving the destination airport that sees approximately 2.8 million passengers annually. With a mean delay of 17.9 minutes and an on-time performance rate of 74%, the route generally experiences moderate delays but maintains relatively high punctuality overall.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Chicago (ORD) → Des Moines (DSM) route is operated by American Airlines, United Airlines. Across 1091 flights monitored in recent months, 74% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 18 minutes. The cancellation rate is 5.13%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 27.2/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Des Moines the average ATFM delay is 2.0 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Chicago the average ATFM delay is 2.0 minutes.
Heading to Des Moines: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Chicago (ORD) to Des Moines (DSM) heads west for about 480 km, a flight time of roughly 1h 1m.
Departures from Chicago on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 37% of ORD-DSM flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Chicago the average ATFM delay is 2.0 min (atfm); arriving into Des Moines it is 2.0 min (atfm).
Across 1,091 tracked ORD-DSM flights, 74% left on time with an average delay of 18 min and a 5.1% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
Check the risk of a specific flight.
Flexible on this trip? Compare flights
Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines (UA) | 74% | 10 min | 6.9% |
| American Airlines (AA) | 74% | 16 min | 3.0% |
Airlines operating ORD-DSM
Airports
Frequently asked questions about ORD-DSM
On the Chicago (ORD) -> Des Moines (DSM) route, on-time performance is 74% with an average delay of 18 minutes, based on 1091 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Chicago-Des Moines is 5.13% across 1091 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 2 airlines: American Airlines, United Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Des Moines, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
