August 26, 2019

INTRODUCING: THE BREITLING COLLECTION

by AHMED SEDDIQI & SONS

To mark the opening of its Breitling boutique in the Dubai Mall, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons introduces some of the key lines from the iconic Swiss brand’s collection of pilot’s and diving watches

You may remember a story from a number of years ago about two adventurers who found themselves stranded after they’d been forced to ditch in the Antarctic when their attempt to become the first pilots to fly a helicopter to the North and South Poles failed. Fortunately for them, they were armed with a Breitling Emergency, a watch with a built-in transmitter that could send a distress signal to the emergency services and guide rescuers to their position.

Few moments capture the essence of Breitling so well. Founded in 1884, the Swiss watchmaker has become the go-to for the world’s pilots, despite competition from a number of other quality watch brands, Rolex, Zenith and Oris among them.

It also makes a fleet of superb diver’s watches, some designed to go down to depths far in excess of what the human body can cope with, and today, the collection includes a series of more elegant everyday pieces created with the same attention to detail, only intended for a calmer life on terra firma.

As Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons announces the opening of its Breitling boutique in the Dubai Mall, we take a look at some of the collections available, and the extraordinary stories behind them.

Navitimer

If there’s one piece that sums up Breitling and its contribution to aviation, it’s the Navitimer pilot’s watch, one of the most iconic of all watch designs. Introduced in 1952, it’s defined by its circular slide rule bezel, a brilliant piece of engineering that enables the wearer to quickly calculate distance, speed, fuel consumption and other information essential to navigators. Back in the mid-20th century, such a device might have been more immediately necessary than it is today, but as any pilot will tell you, it’s vitally important to be able to use a watch as a flying aid in the event of an electrical failure in the cockpit. With its clever slide rule, the Navitimer is the king of pilot’s watches, and also holds the record for being the longest Swiss chronograph in continuous production.

Superocean Héritage

Like the Navitimer, the Superocean became an era and genre-defining wristwatch when it was released in 1957. The 1950s was the decade when diving was popularised, greatly assisted by the invention of Scuba and the release of Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s epic underwater documentary film, The Silent World. The Superocean was originally intended to be used by a new generation of professional divers working deep below the surface, but quickly became a style icon adopted by amateur divers and snappy dressers. Today, that original design inspires Breitling’s Superocean Heritage line. The design may be vintage-inspired, but every model is produced using state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques and comes loaded with functions and impressive all-round performance.

Superocean

The sister collection to the Superocean Héritage is the more modern-looking Superocean, which continues the legacy of the 1950s original by providing high-tech equipment to serious divers. The line includes pieces water-resistant to a lung-crushing 1,000 metres, or 3,300 feet, which is deeper than the Burj Khalifa is tall and around three times deeper than any human has ever dived without being inside a submersible. The line is full of robust, high-functioning, highly legible watches, all boasting diver’s watch essentials such as uni-directional rotating bezels for safely timing dives and Super-LumiNova detailing so the watch can be read in the murky conditions found deep underwater.

Premier

The newest line in Breitling’s collection is the Premier, which debuted just last year. But like most Breitling watches, it has a story to tell. It’s named after a design that debuted in the 1940s when Breitling was otherwise heavily invested in producing military timekeepers in support of the war effort. As the tool watches of the era became less essential, Breitling wanted a watch that felt more escapist and less concerned with the brutal rigours of combat – and that was the Premier, which also became the first Breitling to carry the product name on the dial. Today’s pieces pick up on a similar theme, offering everyday, almost carefree elegance to the style-conscious watch buyer.