I arrived at Sydney airport at 6am, three and a half hours before the A380's scheduled departure time for Singapore. But the check-in queue was already about 75m long. Perhaps we'd all had the same idea of "getting here early". But despite the initial dread, queues moved quickly, with a larger number of check-in desks in operation than normal. The ground staff were clearly accustomed by now to the maximum of 471 passengers they must shift through the terminal every morning and they knew today's plane was almost full.

At the gate I was confused where all these passengers were. But then I realised that we were only boarding part of the plane. To make boarding quick and easy, three gates are used for the A380: one for premium-paying passengers in business class and the suites; one for economy main (lower) deck; and one for economy upper deck. On the main deck we boarded in no time. But - a tip - upper deck economy passengers are likely to board even quicker, because half the deck is business class.

As we shuffled through the economy cabins, I noticed that this was the first plane I'd ever been on where each economy cabin had its own colour scheme. One was beige and blues, one was green and creams, and ours was creams and dusty pinks.

And rather than the normal garish white beams, our lighting looked slightly pinker, slightly warmer. The windows are also 10 per cent larger than those on other jumbo jets. The reports of slightly greater leg room and wider aisle space also rang true. A few extra millimeters across eight hours can make all the difference. And because this plane is designed to fly the "kangaroo route" from Australia to London, via Singapore, any extra space is a bonus. Don't get too excited though. Cramps and fidgets still await you on the A380 and there are still continents between the A380's economy and its business and first classes, which sadly we weren't allowed access to.

The roll along the runway seemed to last longer than normal and I began to wonder how long it would take to get this beast off the ground. But as soon as we took off, it was clear that the A380 is a cut above in terms of engineering. We glided into the air with virtually no noise and with a distinct smoothness that I have never experienced on a plane. Solong to thunderous engine roar.

The smoothness and relative quiet lasted the length of the flight, apart from one shocking heave somewhere just north of Australia. But then no aircraft is immune to a few bumps here and there. It is the Krisworld entertainment system though that makes the A380 a standout. At long last economy can enjoy the same system as business and first class, with 100 movies, 181 TV shows, 700 cds and 22 radio channels on demand. SIA has also become the first airline to offer 3D games. And there are multiplayer games for you to play against fellow passengers, no matter where they are sitting.

The only difference in the entertainment system between the classes is the size of the screen. But most passengers won't have a gripe with the economy class screen, which is as big as the business class screen on many airlines. But this system is about more than just entertainment.

There is an inbuilt PC which allows you to create documents, presentations and even view digital photography, and then save it all back on to your USB flash drive. You can also swat up on your destination thanks to access to world and regional news, Rough Guide information on 25 world cities and Berlitz learning applications for 23 different languages. And the hi-resolution satellite imagery means flight information is more on a par with Google Earth than what I have seen on planes in the past.

Then there are the A380's small touches. I found myself getting excited by the taps in the toilets, which can be digitally programmed depending on how warm you would like the water. The water also runs for a few seconds on its own before turning itself off, which happily puts a stop to the awkward tap-holding-while-washing-face-with-one-hand routine that used to plague me on other long-haul flights.

The food and service was the standard you would normally expect on a SIA flight (I had a lovely medium-rare steak). Lunch did take longer than normal to arrive, but I think that was more the unfortunate position of my seat than the number of passengers. And once in Singapore's Changi Airport, I had no lost baggage to report.

In this age of frequent flying, it is about time economy class passengers were able to travel in greater comfort and style than planes have allowed until now. And habitual business class passengers may even be tempted to save some bucks. If you can coincide your departure time with an A380 flight, I would more than recommend it.

IF YOU GO: In the 2008 two more A380s will be delivered to allow SIA to launch its Sydney-London service. SIA is also keen to launch one of its A380s on the lucrative transatlantic route from London to the US.

For more information visit http://www.singaporeair.com. Among other airlines, Qantas is due to receive its first A380 in late 2008 and Emirates has more than 45 on order.

AAP