I always fly Iberia/American/BA to Spain since American is the only airline that flies into my town. I have also found that business class tickets on Iberia (booked through the American website) are frequently cheaper, and sometimes much cheaper on Iberia than on American. American doesn’t fly out of Chicago to Madrid, only Iberia does. So my flights to Spain on American will originate in Philadelphia, Charlotte, Boston, JFK, even Dallas. That makes for three flights, but I’m used to that and it doesn’t bother me like it does some people. If you’re in business class, the seat selection problem is not really a problem, because those seats are all identical, though you may get a window when you want an interior seat and vice versa.
Out of curiosity, what is the itinerary you’re considering from New Orleans?
Have you checked the Iberia website too? Are the prices for the Iberia flight about the same on both websites? I never check the Iberia website, but it occurs to me that you might see some differences, though I don’t know.
Departing flightSun, Sep 29
6:11 PM Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY)
Travel time: 1 hr 44 min
7:55 PMDallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) (DFW)
American
Economy
Airbus A321AA 2156
1 hr 55 min layoverDallas (DFW)
9:50 PMDallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) (DFW)
Travel time: 9 hr 35 min
Overnight
2:25 PM+1Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) (MAD)
Iberia
Economy
Airbus A330IB 6148
1 hr 25 min layoverMadrid (MAD)
3:50 PM+1Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) (MAD)
Travel time: 1 hr 15 min
5:05 PM+1Santiago-RosalĂa de Castro Airport (SCQ)
RETURNING FLIGHT:
9:15 AMSantiago-RosalĂa de Castro Airport (SCQ)
Travel time: 1 hr 20 min
10:35 AMAdolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) (MAD)
Iberia
Economy
Airbus A319IB 571
1 hr 5 min layoverMadrid (MAD)
11:40 AMAdolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) (MAD)
Travel time: 9 hr 20 min
3:00 PMMiami International Airport (MIA)
Iberia
Economy
Airbus A330IB 6123
Often delayed by 30+ min
4 hr 30 min layoverMiami (MIA)
7:30 PMMiami International Airport (MIA)
Travel time: 2 hr 17 min
8:47 PMLouis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY)