The New Breitling Chronograph Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the Orbiter 3 Balloon’s Flight

The late 19th century saw substantial innovation in watchmaking, including improvements in production processes, introduction of new materials, and standardisation of timekeeping. This was the era in which Breitling was born. Founded in 1884 by Léon Breitling, the brand has been at the forefront of the development of modern chronographs. Completing 140 years in the world of watchmaking and continuing its chronograph legacy, the Swiss brand has just launched the new Aerospace B70 Orbiter versions — Ref. EB70101A1O1S1 has a black strap while Ref. EB70101A1O1E1 has a metal bracelet. The launch commemorates the 25th anniversary of the nonstop worldwide flight of the Breitling Orbiter 3 balloon.

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Nonstop Flight of the Breitling Orbiter 3 Balloon 

In March 1999, hot air balloon pilots Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones completed the first successful round-the-world trip aboard the Breitling Orbiter 3 balloon. Setting a record, they covered 45,633 km in 19 days, 21 hours, and 47 minutes, and finally landed in an Egyptian desert. 

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Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter

The new 43 mm titanium-cased watch gets a crown at 3 o’clock, two pushers at 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock for controlling the watch’s functions, and a 60-minute bidirectional ratcheted bezel. The Aerospace B70 Orbiter 25th anniversary edition also gets a dial in bright orange, the colour of the Orbiter 3 capsule. The watch features the Breitling Orbiter 3 mission logo on the dial at 3 o’clock and the Aerospace Chronometer at 9 o’clock. Its Arabic hour markers and hands are coated with luminescent Super-LumiNova®, making them legible even in low-light conditions. The 3 o’clock, 6 o’clock, and 9 o’clock numerals are also reminiscent of the Endurance Pro, another celebrated Breitling collection. The venerable “wings & anchor” logo stays on the dial at 12 o’clock albeit replacing the 12 o’clock marker above the LCD screens rather than in between.

This COSC-certified chronometer maintains an accuracy of ±10 seconds per year. Powering the new Aerospace is the B70, a thermo-compensated SuperQuartz movement, with a two-year battery life, sporting analog and digital displays — very much in keeping with the Aerospace DNA.  This movement delivers 10 times the accuracy of a standard quartz watch. 

The other key features include the 1/100th-of-a-second chronograph (with split-time and flyback functions), an electronic tachymeter, a lap timer, an EOL indicator, and a 12-/24-hr LCD digital display. Also spotted are a countdown timer, a second timezone, two alarms, and a perpetual calendar. As for the caseback, the Aerospace B70 contains an image of the Orbiter 3 balloon visible through the exhibition window. Within the window is the mission logo with the inscription, “First nonstop flight around the world 25th anniversary”, running across the circumference. The watch is finished on a metal bracelet or on a black rubber strap with a folding clasp.