This year, Breitling will celebrate its 140th anniversary, and the party kicks off with a somewhat unexpected release into the esoteric and multitalented Aerospace family. This new model – dubbed the Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter –functions as a double anniversary release as the watch has been created to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the completion of the first non-stop balloon flight around the world, which landed in Egypt on March 21st, 1999 (25 years ago to the day). With an orange dial that recalls the paint job for the Orbiter 3 capsule, this Aerospace takes it a step further by also incorporating a piece of the original balloon into the case back of each watch.
Following the current generation of the Aerospace EVO, the Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter edition has a 43mm titanium case and comes on your choice of a matching titanium bracelet or a rubber strap. Possibly due to the balloon-laden sapphire case back, the Aerospace B70 Orbiter is 12.95mm thick, vs. the 10.8mm thickness of the standard E79363 generation.
Being an Aerospace, the B70 Orbiter has an ani-digi layout and offers everything from a date and second time zone to a flyback chronograph, timer, and alarm. All of these functions are coordinated via the pair of negative LCD displays that cut into the dial, which has a bright orange gradient base and features the logo from the Orbiter 3 mission (of which Breitling was a main sponsor).
The multi-functional capabilities of this Aerospace are derived from the Breitling B70, a thermocompensated high-accuracy SuperQuartz movement that is a new addition to the Aerospace line (the current generation uses the B79 SuperQuartz). With COSC certification, the B70 appears to be largely similar to the B79 aside from the possible omission of a backlight (this is yet unconfirmed beyond the listed specs) and the ability to run the chronograph to a second shy of 100 hours (vs. 48 hours for the B79). Apart from the functions, the other change with the B70 is the inclusion of two case-side pushers, presumably for controlling the many functions. While I haven’t had any hands-on time with the new model, this is a major departure from past Aerospace models, which features a single crown for controlling the digital complications and setting the watch.
The Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter production is not specifically numbered or limited beyond the availability of actual pieces of the Orbiter 3 balloon that are used in the caseback. Interested parties can expect a retail price of $4,700 on the rubber strap or $4,900 on the titanium bracelet.
I love ana-digi watches and have a genuine soft spot for Aerospace (especially the early examples). It’s a true modern tool watch, and I love the mix of function-over-form thinking and small elements like the fact that the displays (at least those with backlights) remain compatible with night vision goggles. I owned, adored, and entirely regret selling my grey-on-grey E56062-gen example and will almost certainly own another Aerospace in the future. Focusing on this specific new edition, the orange dial and the special balloon case back are certainly cool, but both ana-digi Breitling fans and old-school Hodinkee readers may remember that this is not the first Orbiter 3-themed Breitling. Back in 2000, the brand released the Emergency Orbiter 3, a 1,999-unit edition of the then-current Emergency generation with a blue dial that was further customized with the logo from Orbiter 3. My good pal Jason Heaton had one and wrote a lovely In-Depth for Hodinkee back in November of 2016 – I highly recommend you check it out here.
Back in 2000, the Emergency was selected because that’s what the crew of Orbiter 3 – Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones – wore while riding that balloon around the world. Given the difficulty of the mission and the likely need for rescue, the Emergency was the sensible option at the time. Sadly, that Emergency is no longer made, as it was discontinued more than a decade ago and was replaced by the Emergency II, which is available but as more of a special-order item). Within the modern Breitling catalog, the 25th anniversary thus fell to the Emergency’s sibling, the Aerospace.
Within that modern context, the Breitling Aerospace B70 Orbiter gets the handsome orange dial, and a special edition is born (along with that piece of the original balloon). At 43mm, the watch is a bit large for today’s tastes but is actually no larger (in standard case dimensions) than the original Orbiter 3 Emergency. I do expect that titanium will help quite a bit here, but also that the size won’t be the first concern for the type of Breitling customer that would love to own this new Orbiter 3 Aerospace. This is a niche within a niche. With rumors mounting that the current-gen of the Aerospace will soon be replaced by an updated reference, this B70-powered example may be as much a forward-looking creation as it is a reference to a special event from a quarter century in the past.
For me, there are two takeaways. First, the Orbiter 3 mission is a great story, and I highly recommend you read Jason’s In-Depth on the mission and the original commemorative Emergency (re-linked here for convenience). Second, I’m thrilled that Breitling is not yet done with my favorite model in their lineup as the ever-foolish Aerospace continues to find a home in both Breitling’s past successes and the brand’s ever-evolving future.