Isn't it natural to assume that ambient albums should sound better on CD? I know the quiet bits are supposed to blend with environmental sounds, but crackles and pops of vinyl should be a distraction.
Anyway, that's why I usually put on an Eno CD, rather than this LP, which I bought around 1984 or '85 from Virgin.
Thankfully there aren't many pops on the record, and the very modest surface noise actually creates a nice 'bed' for the music to sit on. It kind of helps the music blend into other sounds.
1/1 is the track everyone's heard from this album, even if they don't realise it. It's been used in so many TV pieces and is a kind of aural shorthand for all of 'ambient music' whenever there's a documentary that mentions the genre. It is the best track on the album. The use of wordless female voices on the other tracks sounds a bit dated now; and it conjures associations with 'new age' music, which of course all of us snobs are keen to distinguish from Proper Ambient.
A few years ago, an ensemble called Bang on a Can did a version of all of Music for Airports arranged for live musicians. I think it was premiered at Stansted Airport, and had Eno's enthusiastic blessing [Google is my friend and tells me they did play there in 1998, though it was only the UK premiere]. I've never heard their version.
 MusicBrainz entry for this album
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