Hamilton | Air Zermatt
Ten years ago, the watchmaker and the air rescue company signed a partnership agreement. The two entities have decided to mark this decade with the opening of a pop-up store on the square in front of the Zermatt train station. Hamilton is also launching a new limited edition of its Khaki Converter, developed in close cooperation with Air Zermatt pilots.
In 2011, Hamilton and Air Zermatt joined forces to create timepieces specifically for helicopter pilots. As an aviation specialist, the Biel/Bienne-based company put all its know-how at the service of the rescue company and, throughout the ten-year partnership, has launched numerous limited editions developed in close collaboration with the airline’s professionals.
In 2021, to celebrate the decade of this partnership, Hamilton is launching the Khaki Aviation Converter Automatic Chronograph, a timepiece designed for experienced pilots and aviation enthusiasts. Its logarithmic bezel can be used for in-flight calculations and to determine crucial parameters such as air speed, distance, fuel consumption and flight time. Also incorporating a chronograph function, this watch is designed to highlight the expertise and talent of professional pilots.
In an entirely fitting way, it was by air that this anniversary piece reached the summit of the Rothorn in Zermatt where it was unveiled on June 10th this year, carried by helicopter and handed over to Hamilton’s CEO Vivian Stauffer. Air base officials, pilots, media representatives and local authorities attended this unusual press conference, which took place on the still snow-covered ski slopes of the Valais resort, in the absence of tourists due to the summer season.
Khaki Aviation Converter Auto Chrono Air Zermatt
This new limited edition draws its colours from the rescue team’s famous livery of red helicopters stamped with the glacier-blue Air Zermatt logo. Against a black dial, the all-important chronograph elements are highlighted with subdials in a blue gradient, and the seconds hand stands out in bright red. Markings on the bezel calculator are also in glacier blue.
Turning the watch over reveals the famous Air Zermatt logo printed upon the open case back. Underneath, Hamilton’s exclusive H-21-Si chronograph movement is on full display. This is an engine to rely on even amid the turbulence and fast-changing conditions of mountain rescue flying – the silicon balance-spring resists any magnetic fields from cockpit instrumentation while ensuring temperature stability and precise timekeeping in the most perilous rescues.
Only 988 pieces of this limited edition Khaki Aviation Converter Automatic Chronograph for Air Zermatt will be produced – one for every Air Zermatt mission flown to the Matterhorn as of January 2021. Available worldwide, they will be delivered in unique packaging inspired by the Emergency Location Transmitter (ELT) device carried aboard Air Zermatt’s helicopters.
These timepieces are sold in the heart of the new pop-up boutique jointly run by Hamilton and Air Zermatt. Located on the station square of the Valais resort, this space that will remain open for an entire year offers a wide choice of timepieces from the watch company alongside the airline’s services including panoramic flights, heliskiing, etc.