Des Moines

DSM · KDSM

Des Moines International Airport

41.53°, -93.66°IA, United States

Passengers a year

3.3M

#84 busiest in the U.S.

36

nonstop destinations

18

airlines

51

departures a day

75.6%

arrivals on time

2.5%

flights cancelled

80.3%

load factor

The ten busiest routes from DSM, by passengers: ORD, DEN, DFW, ATL, PHX, LAS, CLT, MSP, IAH, DTWDSMMSPORDDTWCLTATLIAHDFWPHXLASDEN
Nonstop routes — the ten busiest. Filed traffic, June 2025 – May 2026.

Airlines

American Airlines is the largest carrier at Des Moines, with 29% of all passengers. 18 airlines fly from here.

Share of passengers · each carrier as a slice of the whole airport

American Airlines holds 29% of the airport — the 66th most concentrated of 79 small hubs. The nearest comparison is LIH at 30%.

AirlineSharePassengersSeats YoY
AA
American78% fullAmerican Eagle · operated by SkyWest, Envoy, PSA, Republic
29.2%951.6K+20.2%
UA
United81% fullUnited Express · operated by SkyWest, Mesa, Republic, GoJet, CommuteAir
20.8%675.6K+11.7%
G4
Allegiant86% full
18.9%615.4K+10%
DL
Delta78% fullDelta Connection · operated by Endeavor, SkyWest, Republic
16.7%543.9K+4.9%
WN
Southwest78% full
12.7%412.7K-1.8%
+Other airlines
1.7%54.4K—

Share, passengers and destinations count each airline’s own flights plus the regional flying sold under its brand. On-time covers the airline's own aircraft only — regional affiliates report to the government separately. Seats year on year compares the latest twelve months against the twelve before them.

Destinations

36 nonstop destinations from Des Moines, all domestic.

100% domestic · 0% international · by departing passengers

Top domestic destinations

  • Chicago (ORD)

    236.9K departing · 74% full

    United Airlines · American Airlines

  • Denver (DEN)

    225.5K departing · 81% full

    United Airlines · Southwest Airlines · Frontier Airlines

  • Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW)

    126.5K departing · 77% full

    American Airlines

  • Atlanta (ATL)

    111.2K departing · 81% full

    Delta Air Lines

  • Phoenix (PHX)

    100.5K departing · 83% full

    American Airlines · Southwest Airlines

  • Las Vegas (LAS)

    83.9K departing · 85% full

    Southwest Airlines · Allegiant Air

  • Charlotte (CLT)

    76.3K departing · 76% full

    American Airlines

  • Minneapolis (MSP)

    75.5K departing · 79% full

    Delta Air Lines

  • Houston (IAH)

    59.9K departing · 81% full

    United Airlines

  • Detroit (DTW)

    55.9K departing · 76% full

    Delta Air Lines

All nonstop destinations

36 nonstop · 6 airlines · 36 domestic / 0 intl

Aircraft

By share of departures at Des Moines.

Body class · share of departures

When Des Moines is busiest

Departures by month over the trailing year. Bars scale to the busiest month.

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Departures a month · peak October 2025

Annual passengers since 1990

Total passengers, arriving and departing, in every year on record.

Passengers a year

Every year
1990
1,392,854
1991
1,403,262
1992
1,391,523
1993
1,242,470
1994
1,198,473
1995
1,423,457
1996
1,626,105
1997
1,439,280
1998
1,412,636
1999
1,477,470
2000
1,482,870
2001
1,413,352
2002
1,577,677
2003
1,834,215
2004
1,983,880
2005
1,852,234
2006
1,911,239
2007
1,937,643
2008
1,842,069
2009
1,714,181
2010
1,807,579
2011
1,884,525
2012
2,050,809
2013
2,179,964
2014
2,311,548
2015
2,333,950
2016
2,453,870
2017
2,549,417
2018
2,727,857
2019
2,889,144
2020
1,289,776
2021
2,147,720
2022
2,781,619
2023
3,080,276
2024
3,146,761
2025
3,217,013
2026
1,273,442 so far

Arriving on time

Of every 100 flights landing at Des Moines, 76 touch down within 15 minutes of schedule, 22 arrive late, and 2 are cancelled.

See live FAA delays

Every 100 arrivals

On time 76Late 22Cancelled 2

20 min

average delay

381

flights cancelled

15.1K

arrivals measured

What holds flights up

Share of delay minutes

Most reliable here

Delta Air Lines 85.5%

Least reliable here

American Airlines 66.1%

Among US airports

#84

On time, month by month

Darker is better · 67.7%–81.7%

The weak spot is December 2025, when 67.7% of arrivals landed on time — 7.9 points below the year. The strongest was September 2025 at 81.7%.

Frequently asked

How busy is Des Moines International Airport (DSM)?

Des Moines International Airport handled about 3.3M passengers over the trailing 12 months, ranking #84 among U.S. airports by passengers, with roughly 51 departures a day.

Which airline is the largest at Des Moines International Airport (DSM)?

American Airlines is the largest carrier at Des Moines (DSM), flying about 29% of its passengers. 18 airlines serve Des Moines in total.

How many places can you fly nonstop from Des Moines International Airport (DSM)?

Des Moines (DSM) has 36 nonstop destinations, all domestic.

How often do flights arrive on time at Des Moines International Airport (DSM)?

About 75.6% of flights arriving at Des Moines (DSM) touch down within 15 minutes of schedule, per US DOT figures. About 2.5% are cancelled.

What aircraft flies most from Des Moines International Airport (DSM)?

The Embraer E175 flew the largest share of departures from Des Moines (DSM), about 21% of the total.

Departing counts passengers leaving Des Moines. Data: traffic June 2025 – May 2026, on-time July 2025 – June 2026. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics (T-100 Segment, On-Time Performance).