Over the weekend, I experienced the Airbus A380. I joined Lufthansa on the maiden voyage of the airline’s A380 service from Frankfurt to New York. I flew to Germany Saturday night, landing Sunday morning in Frankfurt.  After settling in for a few hours, I enjoyed a hangar tour of the Lufthansa A380.  The plane is massive; it felt a bit daunting to be standing alongside and under the giant piece of machinery. Its interior is equally impressive, especially first class. Some unique first-class features really stand out. The curtains separating the cabin from business class (premium cabins are upstairs) are soundproof. The air is humidified. There are no overhead compartments (closet space for each passenger instead), and the bathrooms are extra large. And those are only a few of the highlights! Here are a some pictures: I enjoyed my business-class flight, which is quite spacious. The food was delicious and the entertainment options were plentiful. I finally saw The Social Network! And, while the seats have an 8-degree incline when in the full-flat position, I didn’t wake up slipping down my seat once during the flight. The incline was barely noticeable. The lower level of the plane is economy class, with more spacious seating than the existing economy class.  In total, the A380 carries 525 passengers across the Atlantic. Lufthansa has three other A380s in operation, with service to Tokyo, Beijing and Johannesburg. The next planned gateway is San Francisco. Following the hangar tour, we enjoyed dinner at an on-site Frankfurt Airport venue, enjoying German delicacies as we watched the airport runway. From there, we spent some time in Lufthansa’s First Class Terminal lounge. Lufthansa first-class passengers are true VIPs, with a dedicated terminal for check-in. In the lounge, they can sample top-shelf liquors, indulge at an impressive spread of food, relax in massage chairs, enjoy a cigar or freshen up in the showers. The next day, we took off on the inaugural flight. Passengers were greeted with celebrations at the gate and small gifts in celebration. Balloons awaited arrivals in NYC. All in all, it was a celebratory moment for the airline. The flight went off without any glitches. And, just for fun, here’s a picture of me in the cockpit — one of my favorite parts of the tour! – Kimberly Krol, eFlyer editor, circulation and public relations executive