vafarmer70 Posted March 24, 2011 Report Share Posted March 24, 2011 Anyone else been to the Smithsonian lately? Breitling Orbiter 3 Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones guided the balloon Breitling Orbiter 3 up and away from the Swiss Alpine village of Chateau d'Oex at 8:05, GMT, 1March 1999. They landed in the Egyptian desert 19 days, 21 hours and 55 minutes later (21 March 1999), having traveled a distance of over 29,000 miles and completed the first non-stop flight around the world with a free balloon. The success of Breitling Orbiter 3 was based on the lessons learned during two previous attempts to fly around the globe in 1997 (Breitling Orbiter) and 1998 (Breitling Orbiter 2). That experience enabled the Breitling team to develop trustworthy technical systems and a basic strategy that called for Piccard and Jones to pilot their balloon to altitudes of over 30,000 feet, where jet stream winds would drive it across the Pacific at speeds of over 100 miles per hour. Breitling Orbiter 3 was designed and built by Cameron Balloons, of Bristol, England. When fully inflated it stands 180 feet (55 meters) tall. The envelope is constructed of a nylon fabric welded to a helium-tight membrane covered with an outer protective skin that is coated with aluminum on both sides to provide improved thermal control. The shape and special features of the envelope were designed to insure maximum temperature stability in order to conserve helium and reduce propane consumption. The envelope is a Rozier design, combining the advantages of helium and hot air technologies to create a balloon capable of extended flights. A large cell of helium is placed within a specially designed hot air balloon. Six propane-fed burners warm the helium at night, while a system of insulation and vents reduce the effect of solar heating during the day. The result is a balloon that remains at a fairly constant altitude, conserving helium and making it possible to remain aloft for extended periods. The propane gas that fueled the six burners of Breitling Orbiter 3 was contained in 28 titanium cylinders mounted in two rows along the sides of the gondola. Their epic journey was applauded as one of the great aviation adventures of the century. Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain spoke for millions around the world in a special message to the balloonists: "The news of your splendid achievement has delighted us all." Gift of the Breitling Watch Company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subbiesrock Posted March 24, 2011 Report Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Breitlng sponsor all sorts of events, they are also heavily involved in the Red Bull Air Race series (almost every pilot is wearing a superquartz B-1 or similar). This achievement is pretty special, but no doubt costly. It should be no wonder that they charge 5000+ bucks for a 350 dollar movement in a stainless steel case But credit where credit is due, they make some gorgeous pieces. I'll always be a Breitling guy (even though I wear a PAM 111 daily) Edited March 24, 2011 by subbiesrock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bike Mike Posted March 24, 2011 Report Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Breitling does sponsor some pretty cool events that fall right in line with aviation...Of course Check out Breitling sponsor Yves Rossy and Geraldine Fasnacht . I do what they do every weekend and where a Breitling while doing it...where is my sponsorship...hell Breitling can put their name all over my gear! Edited March 24, 2011 by Bike Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vafarmer70 Posted March 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2011 But credit where credit is due, they make some gorgeous pieces. I'll always be a Breitling guy (even though I wear a PAM 111 daily) How funny, I only wore Panerai up until about 18 months or so ago, got rid of all of them, and wear exclusively Breitling now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subbiesrock Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 How funny, I only wore Panerai up until about 18 months or so ago, got rid of all of them, and wear exclusively Breitling now. Mike, we've got the answer Unix over here sold all his PAMs, and obviously Breitling has repaid his dedication by sponsoring all his reps... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vafarmer70 Posted March 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Oh how I wish Breitling sponsored me. Or at least discounted their service fees. I could have bought a couple of reps for what they got from me in the past year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bike Mike Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 I could have bought a couple of reps for what they got from me in the past year. Glad I am not the only one thinking this way... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronoluvvv Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 hehe, deep in the recesses of my mind, I am ALREADY sponsored by Breitling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krpster Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Indeed cool stuff. At least they are sponsoring out-of-the-box kind of things. I mean really, anyone can sponsor a flying man All joking aside it is noce to see them get behind things outside the norm. Racing seems to be common but seems a pretty straight forward thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bike Mike Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Indeed cool stuff. At least they are sponsoring out-of-the-box kind of things. I mean really, anyone can sponsor a flying man All joking aside it is noce to see them get behind things outside the norm. Racing seems to be common but seems a pretty straight forward thing. Looks like Hublot is the sponsor to me... Wonder if this was Prior to Breitling...I would give just about anything to fly that jet back on one jump! Of course I would want to get rid of it at deployment time so I can fly my little race car canopy to the ground and not that nylon overcast he requires to land with that jet pack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krpster Posted March 26, 2011 Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 Maybe my wording didn't flow like I thought it did. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iSD9lPVY6Q Just trying to show that some of the other companies sponsor cool stuff too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave123 Posted March 26, 2011 Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 How funny, I only wore Panerai up until about 18 months or so ago, got rid of all of them, and wear exclusively Breitling now. Stevie thinks you must be blind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vafarmer70 Posted March 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 Stevie thinks you must be blind. Maybe at one time, after all Panerai does make a great looking watch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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