This year marks the 140th anniversary of Breitling and they are kicking things off in an unexpected, though very much welcome, manner. This year also happens to be the 25th anniversary of the first successful nonstop circumnavigation of the planet by a balloon, accomplished by Orbital 3 in 1999, sponsored by Breitling. This year, Breitling is honoring the achievement in the best possible way, with a new Aerospace called the B70 Orbiter. Not only does this specific example tell an amazing story, it also opens the door for a new slate of references to rebuild one of the low-key coolest collections of watches made by Breitling. Better yet, the watch could spark a renaissance of premium ana-digi watches.
The Breitling Aerospace began life as a function forward take on the brand’s classic Navitimer, utilizing the best tech of the ‘80s to create an advanced tool for pilots. The resulting ana-digi watch was indeed embraced by pilots, and marketed as an instrument panel for the wrist thanks to the inclusion of a host of digital features that could be accessed at the press of a button (well, twist of a crown, in this case). The quartz movement inside meant the 40mm case could be kept quite slim, and the use of titanium for the case and bracelet made for an altogether lightweight, low profile wear. These are also the features that make it a beloved reference with enthusiasts to this day.
The Orbital 3 crew did not wear Aerospace watches, but rather Breitling’s Emergency models, as they featured a dual frequency distress beacon that could be activated by unscrewing a pin at the bottom of the case. The Emergency also featured an ana-digi design and could be thought of as something of a more hard core cousin to the Aerospace. The Orbital 3 balloon completed its successful circumnavigation of the planet on March 21st, 1999 after 20 days and 28,355 miles. As the name suggests, this was the third such attempt by the team to complete this feat, which was piloted by Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones.
The new Aerospace honors this incredible achievement, and goes so far as to include a piece of the balloon itself embedded within the caseback. Additionally, the dial is rendered in bright orange that fades to black at the perimeter, a nod to the capsule that housed the crew on this expedition. All of this is set within a new generation of the Aerospace which will hopefully provide a foundation for standard production references in the near future.
The new dial design references some of the older executions, and (mercifully) ditches the italicized hour markers at the cardinal positions. The top and bottom screens have also grown a bit to make them a bit easier to use and read. The top screen will still display the mode, and the bottom screen the function of that mode, which include: 1/100th of a second chronograph (with split-time and flyback functions), countdown timer, second timezone, two alarms, lap function, and perpetual calendar.
The case has also received a full update. It remains titanium, and gets recessed areas along the case wall that house low profile buttons and terminate in the crown guard. The case measures 43mm in diameter, and a hair under 13mm in thickness, meaning it should wear broad and flat on the wrist, though with a lug to lug of more than 52mm, this watch will still take up plenty of real estate. Thankfully, the use of titanium should make the watch relatively wearable for the kinds of things you’d want to wear a watch like this anyway. It might not have the svelte presence of the original examples, but it’s a pretty cool modern execution of the concept that should find just as much success in the field.
The Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter will be limited in production based on the amount of balloon material they are able to utilize for the caseback, but I’d expect more additions to this collection in the near future. Inside you’ll find the COSC-certified Breitling manufacture caliber B70 SuperQuartz movement providing all of the digital functionality listed above. Pricing of this initial example is $4,700, and the watch is available now. Breitling.