The Aerodyne arrived like a bolt of electricity - an idea that crystallised in a single day. For the first time in over a decade of designing watches, music didn’t just accompany the creative process; it laid the foundations of the watch itself.
We were already deep in the aviation mindset. The upcoming SkySplitter - our fast‑jet–inspired pilot’s watch, born from the roar of jets tearing across the skies above The Outpost - kept us circling in that world. So when we began thinking about what should come next, it felt natural to stay aloft a little longer.
“A small watch,” Oliver said. With a pipeline full of robust, larger‑diameter pieces, it made perfect sense. We wanted something neater, slimmer, more universal - yet still anchored in the aviation spirit.
From the outset, I had been waiting for this moment to design a watch that lived in the mind’s‑eye of a sun‑drenched, chrome-soaked American airstrip - Top Gun energy, but before Tom Cruise ever slid on the Ray-Bans. In search of a soundtrack to sketch to, I landed on London-based art-rock band - Public Service Broadcasting.
Their new album, The Last Flight, told the story of Amelia Earhart’s attempt to become the first woman to circumnavigate the globe. I hit play - and was transfixed. The archival audio, the rising tension, the sense of adventure and vulnerability - it all synced perfectly with my vision for a 1930s‑inspired aviatrix watch. Music and design began to oscillate at the same resonant frequency.
From that spark came the Aerodyne - a small watch with a huge presence - both a moment in time and a tribute to a place in history. Thin and neat, the lathe‑turned case feels like it belongs to 1930s engineering: honest, robust, and purposeful. Yet its dial and handset bring a contemporary clarity that grounds it firmly in the present. It’s a remarkable blend of eras - born from a process we didn’t plan, but one that revealed itself powerfully as the design unfolded.
The Aerodyne is one of the finest little time machines we’ve ever made. It’s discreet yet confident, easy to wear, and - despite its modest proportions - works beautifully even on larger wrists. And with fully fitted steel bracelets now emerging across our line-up, the Aerodyne becomes an even more capable companion.
Crafted with intention. Sharpened by story. Elevated by music. And executed with the same uncompromising standards we bring to everything we create. A small watch, yes - but with a big soul.
When Courage Outpaces Convention
Amelia Earhart wasn’t just an aviation pioneer - she was a symbol of what happens when courage outpaces convention. Her achievements continue to inspire people across the world, and her determination to push beyond the expected still shines as a beacon of adventure, resilience, and female empowerment.
Growing up in Atchison, Kansas, Earhart first took to the skies in 1921. Seven years later, in 1928, she crossed the Atlantic as a passenger, becoming the first woman to do so. But being a passenger wasn’t enough - she wanted command of the cockpit. In 1932, she piloted her own aircraft from Newfoundland to Northern Ireland, completing the first solo female transatlantic flight and becoming only the second person after Charles Lindbergh to accomplish the feat. The Distinguished Flying Cross was awarded to her in recognition of her achievement, but by then she had already become a global inspiration.
Record after record followed. Earhart championed both flight and female representation with equal passion - publishing books, writing widely about aviation, and even serving as aviation editor for Cosmopolitan. Her advocacy was as trailblazing as her flying.
And then came her most ambitious endeavour. On June 1st, 1937, Earhart departed on what she hoped would be her defining achievement: a circumnavigation of the globe at its widest point. Her journey - captured so poignantly in Public Service Broadcasting’s album The Last Flight - took her and navigator Fred Noonan from Oakland to Miami, then south to Brazil. From there they crossed the Atlantic to present‑day Senegal, continued across Africa, India, Burma, Indonesia, Australia, and finally reached Papua New Guinea.
Their next stop was to be Howland Island - a remote coral outcrop situated nearly halfway between Australia and Hawaii, the perfect stepping stone toward Honolulu. But the Pacific had other plans. Poor weather, limited visibility, and critical communication failures with the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca, stationed to assist with navigation, left Earhart and Noonan effectively blind in the vastness of the ocean. Despite desperate attempts to establish their position, their final transmission came around 8am on July 2nd, 1937. After one of the most extensive search-and-rescue operations in history, investigators concluded that their Lockheed Electra 10‑E ran out of fuel and was lost at sea north of Howland Island.
The world grieved. A brilliant pilot, a bold adventurer, a champion for women in aviation - gone, but never forgotten.
Today, Amelia Earhart is honoured every year in her hometown of Atchison, Kansas, at the Amelia Earhart Festival, and her legacy is enshrined at the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation in Burbank, California. Generations continue to look to her story as a reminder to defy fear, embrace uncertainty, and pursue the horizon with conviction.
Public Service Broadcasting capture all of this - and more - in The Last Flight. Through their signature blend of archival audio and modern composition, they bring Earhart’s voice, the thrill of 1930s aviation, and the emotional weight of her final journey into vivid focus. Their work became an extraordinary foundation for ours: a musical compass guiding the creation of a watch born from courage, adventure, and a legacy that continues to soar.