OMEGA

MADE: 1967

MATERIAL: Stainless Steel

MOVEMENT: Manual Mechanical

CASE DIAMETER: 42mm

The OMEGA Speedmaster is a true icon within horology because it attended one of man’s greatest feats of engineering and innovation that, on the 21st of July, 1969 enraptured over 500 million people worldwide - the Moon landing.
OMEGA has a long history of creating high quality chronographs. From providing British and Italian Air Forces these instruments to aid the timing of their flights, to becoming official supplier of the Olympic Games in 1932. The OMEGA Speedmaster came as a further addition to the company’s expansive history of precision timing.

Released in 1957, the Speedmaster has assisted not only those on land but astronauts attempting one of the most dangerous of missions; man’s exploration away from the safety of Earth and into the great unknown of Space. Furthermore, its sleek black design inspired by the dashboard of Italian sports cars has barely changed since its inception.

It is the only timepiece that has passed NASA’s rigorous testing process for the Apollo Program. Furthermore, it is the only watch flight-qualified for EVA (Extravehicular Activity– the act of leaving the cabin of a space craft). It is also the watch chosen for use in outer space by the Russian space agency NPO Energia.
After being granted such an honour by NASA, in 1965 the term ‘Professional’ was used on the dial and after the Moon landing the case back was engraved ‘Flight qualified by NASA for all manned Space missions. ‘The first watch worn on the Moon’.

The calibre 321 was eventually superseded by the calibre 861, first produced in 1968. The changes were minimal, the main difference being that the column wheel was replaced by a cam. This part of the movement performs vital functions in order for the chronograph to work correctly. The 861 cam was less delicate than the column wheel but performed with just the same efficiency.
Consequently, these alterations have created deviations in the Speedmaster line whereby, pre-Professional dials can be found on Professional style cases and vice versa, creating what has become known as ‘Transitional’ Speedmasters.
______________________________________________________________________

The Speedmaster with case reference ST 105.003 was given the name ‘Ed White’ after the astronaut who wore it - Edward Higgins "Ed" White II. He became the first man to walk in space (the Gemini IV mission) and tragically lost his life during testing for Apollo I.

- A Fistful of Dollars, the first significant "spaghetti Western" film, is released in the United States.

- Apollo 1: U.S. astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward Higgins White, and Roger Chaffee are killed when fire breaks out in their Apollo spacecraft during a launch pad test.

- The Beatles release Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band