To celebrate the 10th anniversary of its first Flagship Boutique in the world, legendary Swiss watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen took over the Grand Piazza at 1881 Heritage in Tsim Sha Tsui for one aeronautically-charged evening on Wednesday. Taking centre stage at the proceedings was a 10m x 10m life-size replica of a vintage Silver Spitfire fighter plane that served the British Royal Air Force back in WWII.
The stunning model, of course, was to mark the grand opening of the haute horology house’s Silver Spitfire Exhibition ahead of the “Silver Spitfire – The Longest Flight” expedition, which will see a fully-restored version of the plane circumnavigate the globe on a four-month, 43,000km journey in August 2019. With a target of visiting over 25 countries along the way, the adventure will also be sponsored by IWC Schaffhausen.
Over 150 guests attended the high-octane event, which included a flash mob dance performance as well as speeches by Peter Lao, Managing Director for IWC Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and British pilot Matt Jones, who will be co-piloting the around-the-world mission alongside fellow aviator Steve Boultbee Brooks.
To further heighten the experience, attendees were also treated to a first-hand look at the latest Spitfire and TOP GUN lines of the Big Pilot’s Watches collection. A slew of historic timepieces were also on display, including a massive 55mm Mark 11, the largest model from the collection on loan just for the occasion from the IWC Museum, as well as a 1940 design created for the Royal Air Force.
To visit this dazzling display of aeronautical haute horology, head to the IWC Schaffhausen boutique at 1881 Heritage from now until 1st July.