The Bin Laden Pilot's Watch? This'll Take Some Marketing...
There's something to be said for giving the bin Laden family a break. After all, Osama is just one leaf on a giant sequoia of a family tree. Who's to say the other members of the family aren't allowed to go about their lives as regular people? We all have at least one black sheep in the family.
In the years since 9/11, the bin Laden family has popped up in some interesting places. There was Wafah bin La-- er, Dufour, the aspiring pop star/model who briefly made a blip on our "Seriously?" radars a few years ago. Then there's Omar Osama bin Laden, who recently made the news for his planned "horse race for peace." Great, more power to him.
It's the newest bin Laden family endeavor that may raise some eyebrows, though. Yeslam bin Laden, Osama's half-brother, has just come out with a new luxury watch for pilots called the "Aviator." Yes, there is now a bin Laden watch aimed at pilots. I can just see the tagline now: "I don't know about you, but nothing makes me feel safer than a bin Laden in the cockpit."
Welcome back to our "Seriously?" radar, bin Laden family.
The watch itself is actually pretty interesting -- it tells the exact airspeed the pilot is traveling and estimates the flight duration in case the plane's instruments fail. And, superficially, it looks pretty cool too.
Considering Yeslam's father was killed in a plane crash, creating an aviator watch doesn't seem so absurd. And of course the man is entitled to do whatever he pleases and make whatever products he desires. But, on a purely business level, you've got to wonder about the wisdom of marketing a watch for pilots with the bin Laden name. It's a bit like selling Pol Pot designer glasses or an Amherst line of blankets.
The funny thing is, it may not even be the origins of the watch that could keep it from doing well. Bin Laden or no bin Laden, in this troubled economy, I don't see too many people dropping $10,000 to $25,000 dollars for a watch with features unnecessary for 99.99% of the population.
Bin Laden half-brother breaks silence - Dateline NBC- msnbc.com
10 Questions For Yeslam Bin Ladin - TIME
Half-brother of bin Laden launches Aviator watch | Lifestyle | Reuters
Watches: Osama Bin Laden's Brother Invents Must-Have Tourbillion ...
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Nice, entertaining story Mr. Weiner and most perceptive too. I’d like a bin Laden watch for target practice, but I wouldn’t pay a plugged nickel for one. Rather wait until they are being given away like the good prizes in the old Cracker Jack boxes.
I don't care who makes it. I'm more interested in functionality.
Though it's form is a little lacking, in my opinion.
Tell me how the watch can tell what the airspeed is.
A GPS chip in the watch itself. Same way the GPS in your car can tell you how fast you're going. Just needs a little transceiver.
It does it the same way all E6B watches do: when the sweep second hand is at 12 o'clock, you time how long it takes you to go one nautical mile over the ground, then read the speed off of whatever number it's pointing at around the outside. That's what the numbers around the outside of it (clearly visible in the picture and marked "knots") are for.
You don't need a $25000 watch for that. I wear a $70 Timex that does the same thing.
With one of those, I could calculate the speed of an airliner as it heads toward another skyscraper. It may even be piloted by some of the nice terrorists which will soon be released from prison by our new liberal conscience.
Our "liberal conscience" is not new, the Constitution is not new, we are merely faced with the task of undoing the crimes commited by W and his ilk.
Pipers suck.
As the son of a pilot and owner of a piper, I would take exception to the last comment.
However everything else is spot on!
The name Bin Laden is like the name Hitler. Want to live your life in the deep freeze? Keep the family name, Guys.
GW Bush is a pilot, technically. Perhaps he can't wait to get his boxcutter to open the the package.
What? There's nothing political about that is there?
"W" didn't waste any time getting into bed with his old friends the Bin Ladens for this hideous venture.
Bin Laden.....
www.zeitge
I hope everyone will write their Representative and their Senators calling for prosecution for the last administration!!!
I named my two puppies Timex and Bulova. That's because they're watch dogs.....
bada-bing!
(sound of rimshot)
What's next, Jeff Dahmer garden tools? Charles Manson kitchen knives?
Actually, similar stuff is widely available. Only, it promotes much greater killers like the US Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marines.
I just flashed on Cheech and Chong as the Arabic brothers, and Chong landing the jet.
This will be the watch of choice for all
the 'best dressed suicide bombers
We sometimes forget that over 1/2 of
the world wishes us less than well.
At the price point that they are selling it, seems to me those who would buy it why would they need a watch, they determine appointments and such not the other way around, and they would have an entourage to tell them what time it is----'what time is it?'......
Go figure.
Then again I never understood why those same folks would want a Bugatti Veyron, it can only go at top speed for 15 min. before the tank is empty, and it you wanna go that fast, you can just fly in your private jet, considering that once above 300 mph wheeled vehicles tires would burn up and most of the resistance is drag. Hmmmm so that's those folks who were running Citigroup, Lehman et all that were asking for gov't bail outs.....t
Bin Laden is dead but the US government uses his image to continue warring against other countries.
See William Bradley's Profile
Well, David, this is is actually a highly useful watch for any Gulfstream passenger curious about current air speed and unable or unwilling to look at the screen or ask the pilot ...
Seriously, well, maybe not, this would make a really great gag gift.
At a different price point ...
To know the exact airspeed one must calculate it with attending flight conditions; i.e., temperature, barometric pressure, altitude, moisture content, (wet air is lighter than dry air), and without these important facts, a Bin Laden atomic clock would be in useless.
Pete King
Commercial Pilot
Flight and ground Instructor
Instrument rating
Multi-engine rating
OOOOOOO such qualifications, did you train any pilots to fly and not land?
Look from out of the Western sky, it's SKY KING.....o
Seriously, this is disgusting.
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