Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

Connect in the morning. The same one-hour layover misses 1% of the time at 7 am and 1 time in 4 at 7 pm.

Nonstops


United	ORD	DSM	1h 33m	74%	3.2%	1,755	Flying now
American	ORD	DSM	1h 29m	71%	4.1%	1,772	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Des Moines on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included. Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


United Details →	ORD 05:00 → DEN 06:42UA 2666	1h 10m Denver	DEN 07:52 → DSM 10:42UA 4801 · flown by SkyWest	5h 42m	99%	99%
United Details →	ORD 06:00 → DEN 07:42UA 2806	2h 08m Denver	DEN 09:50 → DSM 12:47UA 5211 · flown by SkyWest	6h 47m	100%	91%
United Details →	ORD 08:40 → DEN 10:31UA 526	2h 59m Denver	DEN 13:30 → DSM 16:15UA 1311	7h 35m	100%	89%
Delta Details →	ORD 06:35 → ATL 09:41DL 1247	2h 44m Atlanta	ATL 12:25 → DSM 13:34DL 2094	6h 59m	98%	87%
United Details →	ORD 06:29 → IAH 09:18UA 1799	2h 37m Houston	IAH 11:55 → DSM 14:10UA 6166 · flown by Mesa	7h 41m	100%	83%
Delta Details →	ORD 05:30 → ATL 08:33DL 1264	1h 00m Atlanta	ATL 09:33 → DSM 10:45DL 1704	5h 16m	91%	76%
Delta Details →	ORD 15:22 → ATL 18:36DL 1477	2h 39m Atlanta	ATL 21:15 → DSM 22:31DL 2306	7h 09m	97%	76%
American Details →	ORD 05:00 → PHL 08:05AA 2970	2h 30m Philadelphia	PHL 10:35 → DSM 12:34AA 5165 · flown by PSA	7h 34m	94%	75%
Tight connection: often missed
American Details →	ORD 06:36 → PHL 09:46AA 2115	49m Philadelphia	PHL 10:35 → DSM 12:34AA 5165 · flown by PSA	5h 58m	66%	50%
American Details →	ORD 17:56 → DCA 20:59AA 1787	1h 01m Washington	DCA 22:00 → DSM 23:50AA 5432 · flown by PSA	5h 54m	56%	33%
American Details →	ORD 18:20 → DFW 21:01AA 1559	1h 04m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 22:05 → DSM 23:58AA 1371	5h 39m	45%	22%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

DEN · 1h 10m · leaves 05:00 1%

IAH · 1h 19m · leaves 07:35 5%

ATL · 1h 00m · leaves 05:30 9%

Afternoon and evening

IAH · 1h 02m · leaves 16:05 24%

DCA · 1h 01m · leaves 17:56 44%

DFW · 1h 04m · leaves 18:20 55%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.


United UA 425 ORD 07:12 → ATL Delta DL 2094 ATL 12:25 → DSM Connection details →	1h 58m	6h 22m	95%	85%
United UA 2806 ORD 06:00 → DEN Frontier F9 1678 DEN 10:46 → DSM Connection details →	3h 04m	7h 34m	100%	82%
American AA 3719 ORD 11:45 → MSP Delta DL 4913 MSP 15:40 → DSM Connection details →	2h 13m	5h 09m	98%	78%

Rank all connections, any airlines →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON