To Madrid With American Airlines

Two of the more pleasant, stress-free, long-haul flights I've taken recently were between Miami and Madrid on board American Airlines. Flying in business class helped, of course, especially given that my flight to the Spanish capital in AA's Boeing 767 took 8.5 hours with the wind at our backs; the return flight, flying into prevailing winds on a 767, was a touch over 9 hours.

A lot of things helped the time go by. American's biz-class seats are comfortable, though not as large or posh as the near-sofas on board Singapore Airlines or AA's oneworld alliance partner Cathay Pacific Airways. What really worked for me was American's casually friendly but efficient cabin crew and three well-chosen amenities.

The first of these was the nifty digEplayer ET, the handheld digital in-flight entertainment device handed out free of charge in biz class. The device - a forerunner was created by a former Alaska Airlines baggage handler to brighten up in-flight entertainment - can be fitted in the seatback in front of you for easy use or propped on your lap or a tray table. It responds to button-pushing or use of a remote. The 8-inch LCD screen is well-designed for high-resolution images and American loads the device with almost uncountable hours of movies, TV shows, games and recorded music.

Amenity number two were the Bose headphones. You can use them to hear high-quality audio linked to the digEPlayer or use the 'phones to cancel out cabin noise and the drone of jet engines. Very cool.

Amenity number three is a tad caloric but fun. American dishes out ice cream sundaes - your choice of hot fudge or butterscotch. It's a yummy way to finish off a meal before drifting off, sated, to the Land of Nod. It even worked for me - for a time, anyway - and I have a horribly hard time sleeping on airplanes, thanks to noise, movement in the cabin and the unfortunate absence of my own bed.

I have but one complaint, a quibble to be sure: The airline was out of my preferred entree during dinner service on the flight to Spain. My back-up choice was tasty, and food shortfalls occur on a number of airlines. But that's the problem: Do airlines not survey passengers to pinpoint their favorites and plan accordingly? This is like putting a pair of socks into a dryer and coming up with one sock. It doesn't stop you from walking but why does it happen?

That pales, of course, next to a safe, on-time journey, which I had both ways on American. (Not so for my connecting flight on Spanish carrier Iberia from Bilbao to Madrid, which was delayed.) Gooey ice cream sundaes, Bach and Bob Dylan on the headset, and Bond - James Bond - on-screen also have a way of smoothing things out.

In Madrid Barajas Airport

In Madrid's Barajas International Airport I found a fine example of how a major international airport should look, feel and operate. I did no more than change planes there on my journey between Bilbao and North America, but that was enough time to enjoy the airport - especially the massive, shiny and efficient terminal 4.

Terminal 4, designed by brand-name architects Richard Rogers and Antonio Lamela, opened in 2006. About a mile and a half away via clean, modern, automated trains is the terminal 4 satellite facility. Together, the two terminals command some 8 million square feet of space inside and out. This makes for one of the largest airport terminals in the world.

Most of the time, as I discovered on my recent transit, this is good; there are plenty of flights, plenty of gates, plenty of shops and comfortable, well-designed passenger lounges. Even when you sit by the departure gate waiting for boarding to begin, the airport is comfortable - thanks in part to its soaring ceilings and enormous windows, which permit plenty of natural light to softly illuminate the space during the daylight hours.

Of course, sometimes - as when you are rushing to make a connecting flight - being in an enormous terminal is not so good. It can take up to 20 minutes to reach the most remote departure gates at Barajas with a combination of walking and riding the automated trains.

Iberia, the big Spanish airline slated to merge with British Airways, is the dominant carrier at Madrid Barajas, accounting for some 60 percent of all passengers. Iberia shares terminal 4 and its satellite facility with BA and other oneworld alliance members. Spaniards I talked to did not speak well of Iberia, and on my return flight to Madrid Barajas from Bilbao, I saw why. Lines were long in the much smaller Bilbao airport, some passenger check-in kiosks weren't working and Iberia's customer service reps took their time dispensing help and advice.

Back at Barajas, this all reversed and the Iberia reps were fine. Fine, too, were Iberia's mezzanine-level first-and-business-class passenger lounges in terminal 4. They were spacious, bathed in natural light and offered oodles of open spaces and nooks for people to work, doze, chat or watch TV. The food offerings, however, were only so-so, more snacks than meals, unlike the great airline lounges in Hong Kong, Singapore and Seoul.

With nearly 50 million yearly passengers, Madrid Barajas is the 11th-busiest airport in the world, the fourth-busiest in Europe and the biggest and busiest airport in Spain. For all its big numbers, I found operations to be generally smooth. Located only about 8 miles from the city center, Barajas airport is connected to Madrid by line 8 of the modern Madrid Metro.

New York City and U.S. airports, please copy.