Buying intercontinenal plane tickets

I am sure you can do this if you have his birthdate and passport name, number, and expiration date, but what are the visa issues? I'm pretty sure nobody here has any clue on that.

He is going to have to show his passport long before he boards. He will have to check in at the front of the airport. The issue with advance names and reservations with the airline is that the name will be checked against security lists. I am sure you can buy it but you need all of his information and do not make a mistake anywhere with spelling or dates. I personally would not do it. Let him make the reservation so that he is responsible.

I don't really understand the question. Why are you flying from the USA to Barcelona and then to Amsterdam? Why not fly direct?
And what plane tickets are you talking about? Is you friend flying from Algeria to Barcelona? From Barcelona to Amsterdam or from Algeria to Amsterdam?
If you are both flying together (from wherever to wherever) you can do a booking for two different people. You will need both your passport details to complete the online passport info form before you can get your boarding cards.

Barcelona to Amsterdam is a Schengen/EU internal flight. There is no immigration (passport control) or customs when you land at Amsterdam. But the airline will require passports to verify your ID when you check in or go through security.

As far as visas are concerned, an Algerian citizen does need a visa to enter the Schengen area. He will need to apply for this from the embassy or consulate of whichever country he is entering first, Spain or the Netherlands. Once in the Schengen area, he can travel to other Schengen countries so long as he remains within the time limit of his visa (normally 90 days).
Assuming you are a US citizen you will also be restricted to 90 days in 180, but you do not have to get a visa in advance.

From your initial post, I am assuming that you are flying to Barcelona, spending some time there and then going to Amsterdam otherwise, I imagine that you would fly directly to Amsterdam. But regardless of what your flight plans are, you can purchase an airplane ticket for another person. I have done it lots of times and in this age of etickets, it's a complete non-issue. As said above you need to make sure that you enter all your friend's information correctly when buying his ticket. Buying the ticket is not the issue; the bigger issue is that he will need to get a visa whether he is flying from Algeria to Spain or the Netherlands. I don't know if you are buying the ticket because he can't afford one but if that is the case, he may have a difficult time proving the financial resources, the presence of which is a requirement for getting a visa from Schengen Area countries. If he has the visa already, just go online and buy him the ticket.

steve,

In booking a ticket for your friend, you may need to enter his Passport number or other details. Also, you'll need to know the exact spelling of the name listed on his Passport.

Thanks all. I apologize if my question was somewhat unclear. We have met in Europe for the last 3 years so are aware of the visa requirements which he has. We are starting in Barcelona then want to visit Amsterdam. I need to buy the airline tickets in advance to get the cheapest fares so was wondering if that was possible. I have all the necessary info except for his passport number. I was not aware I needed that. Thanks for that info. You are all awesome and I appreciate your expertise.

Thanks for giving me the information I was looking for.

There are some potential complications. Four tickets from places that the airline considers a fraud risk you may have to show the credit card to the Airline. This can be done in advance if the airline is at your local airport. But I would be sure to ask if they are going to require verification of the card before I spent the money