Sally Blyth flies Lisbon to Madrid on Iberia Airlines flight IB3111

The plane: An Airbus A320 — it seemed quite new. Class: Economy. My seat: 8E, middle seat next to my husband in the window seat. The aisle seat was empty. The seat was comfortable enough but didn’t recline at all — unusual but not an issue for a short flight like this.

How full? The plane has 180 seats but it was only about two-thirds full, if that. Fellow passengers: Mostly Spanish and Portuguese. Lots of families. All very orderly. Flight time: Scheduled to leave at 9.50am, we left 40 minutes late due to heavy traffic volumes at Lisbon airport. We arrived in Madrid only slightly late as the plane made up heaps of time, turning a scheduled one-hour-20minute flight into a 50-minute one. With Spain being one hour ahead of Portugal, we put our clocks forward upon arrival. It was a perfect blue-sky day and while we were queued up awaiting our take-off slot, we had a great view of the planes taking off and landing as we moved slowly forward. Luggage: 23kg checked baggage.

Service: Friendly, helpful staff throughout. All announcements were made in Spanish and English.

Entertainment: None.

Food and drink: Nothing offered but you could buy a snack if you wished. I had purchased a pastry and coffee at the airport and took that on board without problem. Airport experience: Lisbon airport was very busy, but the check-in and departure processes were swift and painless. We returned a rental car prior, and everything was very easy and streamlined in that regard (as it had been when picking it up). Access from the car rental area to the terminal was simple.

The bottom line: A stress-free, pleasant, uneventful flight with ideal flying conditions and great views, especially as we neared Madrid. I’d certainly travel Iberia again.