Breitling celebrates the 25th anniversary of the first nonstop balloon flight around the world with the release of the Aerospace B70 Orbiter.
If you’re in the mood to brush up on your history, or if you’re simply trying to rid yourself of your globophobia, you might be interested to know that, a quarter of a century ago (that was only 1999 mind), balloonists Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones completed a daring voyage, landing the Breitling Orbiter 3 in the Egyptian desert after becoming the first to circumnavigate the globe nonstop in a balloon.
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It was considered the final great flight challenge of the 20th century. In total, 11 teams of prominent personalities made 21 attempts. Bertrand Piccard himself tried twice in 1997 and 1998 before succeeding on the third attempt with Brian Jones. The balloonists touched down in Egypt after traveling 45,633 km in 19 days, 21 hours, and 47 minutes, achieving the longest flight, both for distance and duration.
Watchmaker Breitling is no stranger to the aviation world – as far back as the 1930s it was developing precision cockpit instruments and pilots’ chronographs for military aviators and with the rise of airlines, the brand went on to become “the official supplier to world aviation” with its Navitimer chronograph, equipped with a computational slide rule, ideal for commercial air crews. Today, Breitling pays homage to that record breaking balloon journey with the Aerospace B70 Orbiter 25th anniversary edition, each of which contains a segment of the original Breitling Orbiter 3 balloon, visible through the transparent caseback.
With a bright-orange dial the colour of the Orbiter 3 capsule, the new timepiece also features the Breitling Orbiter 3 mission logo around its perimeter, the Breitling Orbiter 3 mission logo on the dial at 3 o’clock, and the inscription “First non-stop flight around the world 25th anniversary.”
Presented on a titanium bracelet or a black rubber strap with a folding clasp, the watch features numerals, indexes, and hands coated with luminescent Super-LumiNova, making them legible even in low light. Both the case and optional bracelet have been crafted in titanium, a robust material with the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any metal. It’s also nonmagnetic, hypoallergenic, and highly resistant to corrosion, guaranteeing its wearers a strong, safe, and comfortable watch that will support them—even on the toughest missions.
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The watch is powered by the newly designed COSC-certified Breitling Manufacture Caliber B70: a thermo-compensated SuperQuartz analog and digital display movement that delivers ten times the accuracy of a standard quartz watch. This engine powers the watch’s array of functions, including a 1/100th of a second chronograph (with split-time and flyback functions), countdown timer, second timezone, two alarms, lap function, and perpetual calendar.
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