They left!It was around 5 p.m.

　　on March 9 when a twin-engine propeller aircraft registered HB-IRJ took off from Geneva airport.

　　Direction:the world!This 77-year-old Douglas DC-3 will perform a circumnavigation of the planet,

　　approximately 40,000 kilometres,with 74,500 flight hours.

　　In its hold is an unusual cargo:500 watches belonging to a special series of an icon oh so revered by generations of airplane pilots,

　　the breitling replica Navitimer.

A slide rule watch

　　It was in 1952 that the Swiss manufacturer launched this mythical Navitimer.

　　Thanks to its circular slide rule(“it looks complicated at first glance,but in fact its manipulation is very simple”,jokes Jean-Paul Girardin,vice-president of Breitling),

　　the aviators were able to benefit from a watch-instrument for carrying out various mathematical operations necessary for aerial navigation.

　　Originally,

　　this Navitimer was driven by a mechanical movement with manual winding.

　　It was then equipped with an automatic movement from 1969,

　　the famous Caliber 11,

　　before appearing in a quartz version during the 1970s.

　　It took two decades to witness the great return of watchmaking tradition which allowed the Navitimer to reconnect with a mechanical heart.

　　2009 marked a new major milestone in the history of watches with the launch of the Breitling Replica Caliber 01 manufacture chronometer-certified movement.

　　A new mutation occurred in 2014 with a change in diameter,

　　the Navitimer going from 42 mm to 46 mm.

　　The Navitimer DC-3 World Tour limited series,

　　which is currently flying around the world,

　　is distinguished from its“classic”sister by the golden color of its central second hand and by an engraved caseback recalling this event.

　　Each copy will also be accompanied by a certificate signed by the captain,

　　Francisco Agullo,

　　guaranteeing that the watch has indeed completed the entire long journey in the hold of the plane.

A mythical aircraft

　　According to this expert who usually flies Boeings,

　　the Douglas DC-3,

　　built in some 16,000 copies,

　　has revolutionized air transport.

　　Entering commercial service in 1936 in the United States,

　　it first distinguished itself during the Second World War before equipping numerous armed forces and international civilian companies.

　　Its assets:speed,

　　radius of action and robustness.

　　Even the official cessation of its manufacture in 1945 did not stop its career.

　　Taking off and landing on land of very modest dimensions and easily dispensing with hard runways,

　　it rendered many services in Africa,

　　South America or in polar areas.

　　In 2013,

　　it was still a DC-3 that was responsible for supplying a scientific base in Antarctica!

　　How many are left in flying condition today?A few dozen at most.

　　Carefully restored by a group of enthusiasts,

　　the aircraft in Breitling fake watches colors,

　　built in 1940,

　　used by the US Air Force during the war before becoming an airliner for American Airlines,

　　is among the survivors.

　　And thanks to this world tour scheduled to extend from March to September and which will see it land in 28 different countries,

　　a DC-3 will experience a new great adventure.

　　A historic first since no aircraft of this type had ever dared to embark on such a challenge.

　　Last but not least:for this world tour,

　　Captain Francisco Agullo is wearing a very personal version of this special Navitimer.

　　Its copy is indeed engraved on the back,

　　instead of the limited edition number,

　　with the words”Pilot”.

　　A unique piece which,

　　notice to collectors whose eyes are already shining,

　　will remain on their wrist and will not be sold…