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| Dufeau Luxury Watches |
The name of the Swiss watch company Dufeau is an homage - though its spelling has been internationalized - to flight pioneers Henri and Armand Dufaux from the watch mecca Geneva. Armand became world famous in 1910 when he flew a world record of 70 kilometers (44 miles) across Lake Geneva in his Apparat NO.3.
Obligated to this historical background, Dufeau exclusively specializes in producing high-quality pilot's watches, the trademark of which is the use of certified Aerospace Stainless Steel for the case and bracelets. It stands to reason that an enthusiastic aviator would be behind this, and so it is. During the course of almost a decade, Walter P. Zaugg flew for the International Red Cross in Africa and the UNO in the Middle East before becoming a commercial airline pilot.
Zaugg's childhood friend Peter Schmid, a master watchmaker who was employed for many years at a reputable Genevan manufacture in the workshop for complications and today moonlights as a teacher at the School of Watchmaking in Biel, is in charge of the technical side of the watches. Pilot's watches were never a trend topic for Dufeau, this type of timepiece was always the persisting main concept. This is manifested in the consistency with which the company gives each new model an identity relating to aviation.
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How important, then, was the year 2003 for Dufeau, the centennial of the first motorized flight in history! At 10:35 A.M. on December 17, 1903, they were ready: The Wright Flyer I took off from the sandy beach at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina to complete the first motorized flight in history. It was obviously sage foresight that the exact moment of this historic event changing the course of civilization forever was photographed. The picture shows Orville Wright in the flying machine, and his brother Wilbur running beside it to the right.
The flight lasted an entire twelve seconds and compensated for the research lasting years and numerous attempts at flight in gliders for the meanwhile practically impoverished Wright brothers. The basis for this success was the aerodynamic and aviation knowledge of Otto Lilienthal, whose studies and patents encouraged many adventurers to attempt motorized flight, though it was considered impossible at the time.
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Dufeau
PO Box 994
Franktown, CO 80116
Tel: 303-663-3717
Fax: 303-663-9974
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