SKY ISN’T THE LIMIT
LUXURY WATCHMAKER BREITLING TAKES ITS LOVE FOR AVIATION SERIOUSLY. IT’S A LOVE THAT BEARS TESTIMONY IN ITS DISTINCT PRODUCT PORTFOLIO
The 1989 Pilatus PC-6 Porter has slowed down to 60 knots from a zooming 160; tandem master Jan Eckmann’s altimeter says 14,000 feet, and he’s begun the final countdown. I peep out of the aircraft and there isn’t a chance to voice any hesitation as we’ve already dived. Floating on what feels like an air-cushion during the minute-long freefall, with the Swiss Alps and the Jura on the horizon, all I can do is gasp in amazement. As the parachute opens, we float for some time before descending; the exhilarated first-time skydiver in me simply can’t get enough. With feet firmly planted on the ground, I realise just how important aviation is to Breitling; their skydiving team has merely reiterated their passion for flying. BY ADII DANDE
High Flyers
The brand that claims to make not just watches but ‘instruments for professionals’, started manufacturing on-board chronographs for aircraft cockpits as early as the 1930s. They went on to being the first chronograph in space when Scott Carpenter orbited the Earth three times aboard the Aurora 7 capsule, in 1962, with a Navitimer on his wrist; a watch with a 24-hour graduation, vital to distinguish day from night. It goes without saying that the Navitimer became the pioneer in the sphere of space. It has since been equipped with a Manufacture Breitling movement featuring manual wind-