DSM to BNA flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Des Moines International Airport to Nashville International Airport · 530 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at DSM or BNA right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Des Moines (DSM) to Nashville (BNA) arrived on time 83% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 1.8% were cancelled, and 9% arrived an hour or more late.
- Allegiant Air is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 8pm did best (95% on time); around 6pm did worst (65%).
- Monday was the most reliable day to fly (89% on time) and Thursday the least (77%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (48%).
Which airline is most on time from DSM to BNA?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allegiant Air | 83% | 1.8% | 26 min | 9.3% | 165 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am76%17 flights
- 9am82%12 flights
- 11am92%13 flights
- 12pm80%10 flights
- 1pm100%11 flights
- 2pm86%14 flights
- 5pm87%23 flights
- 6pm65%17 flights
- 8pm95%20 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday89%4.2% cancelled
- Wednesday100%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday77%0.0% cancelled
- Friday83%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday50%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday79%3.4% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)48%
- Extreme weather24%
- Late-arriving aircraft21%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion6%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather100%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)0%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
DSM to BNA: common questions
- How often are DSM to BNA flights on time?
- 83% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Des Moines to Nashville cancelled?
- 1.8% of scheduled flights were cancelled (3 of 165).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 26 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 150 min behind schedule on average, and 9.3% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at DSM?
- Flights on this route spent 12 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: BNA to DSM — 81% on time
More flights from Des Moines
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: DSM → BNA, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.