It was the ropes that did it. The ropes went from somewhere under the cabin in a long arc up to the nose of the ship and swung there, slack in the wind, even at 1000ft.

They brought to mind all those ropes that have important jobs to do on boats, and lent this great white blimp a rather stately, nautical feel.

And that, together with the swing and sway of the cabin in the gusting wind – to and fro, fore and aft – made the sensation of being on the first Zeppelin to fly over London for around 90 years more akin to standing on deck of a sailing ship as it crested a restless sea.

The Star Over London Airship Sponsored by Stella Artois – to give it its full and laborious title – will be sailing over the capital until August 21, offering aerial views of the city previously seen only by blasé pigeons.

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And just like on board a ship, your first few minutes are spent finding your ‘air legs’ as you wobble about the cabin with your camera in the pursuit of the ‘Eastenders’ shot of the Thames, as it curves to avoid that great wart on its shoreline, the old Millennium Dome.

After that though, it’s plain sailing. The Star has been licensed to fly up to eight trips a day from its base at an airfield in Upminster, Essex. An hour’s ride following the river into town, past Charlton Athletic football club, past city airport, past Canary Wharf and on to within spitting distance – not that you would, obviously – of Westminster, will set you back just £360. Yup, £360.

There are shorter, cheaper trips (30 mins, £185; 45mins, £295), but you need the hour to get anywhere near what you’d actually call London (parliament, London Eye, Tower Bridge, but not, sadly, a quick buzz over Oxford Street for the sales).

Which means for that money, its clientele might be restricted to the corporate, or corpulent, sector, as only businessmen or aging American tourists are likely to have that ready dosh to burn in these times of much publicised wallet-watching.

Which is a shame, because it’s a pretty unique experience. It’s surprisingly quiet once you’re up, up, and away, and from your elevated vantage point the urban sprawl looks unusually controlled and regimented – blocks of houses map out below like squads of marching military, their gardens forming trim green borders.

That said, you’ll only see half of it. The rest of the time you’ll be peering through your viewfinder as the whole jaunt is pretty much a mobile photo opp. The large windows mean you don’t actually have to leave your padded seat to take countless pictures, and with only 12 of you on board (plus a couple of crew) you’ve room enough to move.

And get this – for photography geeks there’s even a small porthole which opens so you can stick your camera out into nothing but air (and relish that delicious, heady thrill that goes with the knowledge that you really could almost spit on them down there in Westminster…) thus avoiding that frightful scourge of the modern snapper, double-glazing reflection.

The spotters amongst you will want to know that the 75 metre-long Zeppelin flies around 40-45mph – though it can muster speeds of over 70mph downhill – and its semi-rigid frame is filled with non-flammable helium gas.

Unfortunately it’s very much at the mercy of the elements – the maiden voyage was delayed a week because of the weather – so you’ll need to check the website on the day of your flight to see if it’s going ahead.

But I was lucky. For my voyage the weather was perfect, visibility was spectacular and, as I disembarked and the great ship rose from the ground above me, its furious chugging rapidly fading to leave only the single trilling of an indefatigable skylark, I did have the feeling that I’d seen something of London that I hadn’t seen for years, living in amongst it all.

A nice bit of order amongst the chaos.

Star Over London bookings line: 020 7183 3911; www.staroverlondon.co.uk

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