Well it finally happened to me! After all the stories of exploding Fiddy Crystals several weeks ago, mine decided to go at a very inopportune time. Last Tuesday, I was flying from Salt Lake to Denver in the 1st class cabin and sitting at a right side window seat with my Fiddy on my left wrist. We had just reached flying altitude and the cabin was fairly quiet when all of a sudden there was a very loud POP ( About the level of one of those New Years pull-the -string poppers) and the lady next to me in the aisle seat was showered with particles of glass and she screamed very loudly. For some reason, I knew exactly what had happened and I looked down to see this jagged crater was all that was left of my watch crystal. The poor lady was kind of frozen in her seat doing this sort of Oh Oh Oh Oh moan and looking wide eyed for wounds on her person and I was frozen wide eyed staring at her and holding my left arm in the air. The Flight attendant rushed to ward us and the frightened lady, followed very quickly by a sky marshall ( This flight was continuing on to Boston). The lady was taken to the front of the cabin and I was isolated with the sky marshall who told me to put both hands behind my neck. I was quickly repeating that my watch crystal popped and broke and that was what had happened. When he let me show him the damaged watch he soon believed that it was a weird accident. He made me surrender the watch and picked up some the shards of glass on the floor and seat, and actually found an 1 inch diameter piece from the center of the crystal. Thank God that the watch was still working, which seemed to prove that the watch was not some sort of explosive devise. After a discussion with the Captain, They checked out the watch very carefully, and an inspection of the lady, the flight attendant brought the watch back to me and helped to calm me down as well. I apologized to the shaken lady who was then very gracious and realized my complete embarressment. I was totally mortified, 1st of all by what had just happened, but also because it had happened with a REP and not the real thing, somehow this made it even more embarressing (Even though no one else knew that or even considered it). Then the guy across the aisle from the lady asks me to see the watch and I hand it to him. After a minute of inspecting the damage, He says "I really know how you must feel" and shows me his 1950 Flyback Chrono on his right wrist and tells me this is the 1st time he has ever seen anybody else wearing a Panerai and this should not have happened to one with a Sapphire Crystal and I was one unlucky SOB. He told me that my Fiddy was still beautiful and Officine Panerai would definately make it right. (3 days before I had put a new OEM Golden Calf Fiddy strap with Oem buckle on the rep and it looked stunning). The lady and I changed seats and I continued to talk Panerai with my new buddy. Thank God for all the time and reads that I have experienced on this forum, because I not only could talk Panerai but I actually knew more about the subject than he did. We kept inspecting each others watch and he kept commenting on how beatiful the case and dial was and especially the exposition caseback and movement (While I kept looking to see if his was a fake) LOL.
What an experience and I am happy to say that I am getting a replacement watch from the dealer and he was most gracious and generous to the highest order. ( Offered to pay a replacment fee plus shipping, But he refused to take it. I was blown away). I really felt naked without a watch for the next 4 days (I usually travel with at least 2, but the Fiddy is so special to me that it was the only one I wanted to wear). What a weird series of events!!
Rogerwine
What an experience and I am happy to say that I am getting a replacement watch from the dealer and he was most gracious and generous to the highest order. ( Offered to pay a replacment fee plus shipping, But he refused to take it. I was blown away). I really felt naked without a watch for the next 4 days (I usually travel with at least 2, but the Fiddy is so special to me that it was the only one I wanted to wear). What a weird series of events!!
Rogerwine
