Helmut Sinn made his pilot license about 70 years ago. And just shortly the now 88-year old has brought his active time of aviation to an end. However, aviation has destined his life decisively, even as he had to withdraw from active flying due to the flight prohibition for Germans after second world war to another passion: development and production of pilot’s watches.
His passion creating own watches was a logical consequence. As he wasn’t allowed to fly he designed, following his beloved flight watches and instruments in cockpits, wristwatches of professional quality and perfect readability. Success came quick and so market competitors sold similar pilot’s watches soon after.
As Helmut Sinn was not only in the air but also on the ground the „speedy Helmut“, he got himself a driver’s licence and started from now on at motor rallies. In 1953 he won the rallye Algier – Capetown, with 15.000 kilometers (approx. 9.400 miles) one of the strongest and longest race on wheels, in a VW Beagle.
Dissatisfied with at that time available time measuring systems, he just worked them out himself. Until today his stop-watches are still being produced as they are still desirable instruments among oldtimer fans.
As the Germans again were allowed to fly and the German Air Force put their own jets into service, Helmut Sinn stayed with private flying. However, the relatively bad quality of dashboard watches in modern jets made him think of an alternative: next to standard on-board watches one of his designed chronograph models was used even 40 yeas later in the prototype of the Eurofighter.
After that a Sinn-watch even was brought into action in space: as the german astronaut Reinhard Furrer left off with the Spacelab in 1985 he had a „142 S“ on his wrist and had brought with this watch even the first automatic chronograph into outer space.In 1956 Helmut Sinn founded his own watch company in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Functional watches, mostly chronographs of uncompromising quality were here designed, assembled and sold to unrivaled prices via direct distribution. In the mid 90ies, after almost 40 years, Helmut Sinn thought about retiring from active business. But the sale of his company went unfortunate.
But Helmut Sinn could not and wanted not to retire. At the age of 81 the supposed „oldest-young-entrepreneur“ in Germany founded a new company: Jubilar Uhren.
Under the brand name Chronosport he produces a line of classical chronographs, pilot’s and other precision watches following his old principle: „As perfect as possible and only as expensive as absolutely necessary!“
After years of successful cooperation Helmut Sinn decided to buy his main watch supplier, the GUINAND Watch Co. S.A., a traditional watch company that was founded in 1865 in Les Brenets, Jura, which is now located in Lengnau in the region of Berne.
Here, at one of the oldest swiss manufacturers of complicated watches, mainly chronographs with or without rattrapante (split seconds), new complications for the new projects and watch models that Helmut Sinn conceives are created.
Also the GUINAND WZU-5 (WZU = Welt-Zeit-Uhr = world time watch), the first all mechanical wrist-watch that can indicate four (!) individually adjustable world time zones with its unique caliber is manufactured here since 2003.
Even with almost 90 years of age Helmut Sinn does not think of retiring.
So we all may be anxious to see, with which watch creations he will surprise the watch market in the future.
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