OKTOPUS DIVES INTO NEW WATERS
OKTOPUS DIVES INTO NEW WATERS
A closely-knit team of brothers climbs aboard their RHIB, a high-speed assault boat. On the horizon looms a captured vessel. Speed and precision are critical. Quickly, they approach its stern and hook onto it, ready to pounce. The roar of the larger ship’s engines has veiled the sound of their approach. Their objective: rescue hostages. The captors: pirates. The location: off the coast of Somalia. Exact details cannot be published.
This is an undetailed glimpse – the most we’re allowed to give you – into the high-stake, top secret missions of Frømandskorpset, the Danish Frogman Corps.
They are brothers not by birth but by shared experiences. Frømandskorpset is the Naval Special Operations Force in the Danish Military, but operationally independent. These are the toughest guys in Denmark; of the hundreds that apply each year, only a handful is good enough to graduate from the unforgiving training programme. With so few members in their ranks, only some 300 despite a long history, there is a strong sense of community in this exclusive club of current and former Frogmen.
Operational success demands high levels of trust, a confidence in each other. This engenders a close bond for life; once a Frogman, always a Frogman.
To celebrate this fraternity, Conventus Ranae, the association representing and formally uniting current and former servicemen, commissioned the design and manufacture of a unique diver’s watch: the Linde Werdelin Oktopus Frogman. As divers, unity through a dive watch is the obvious choice.
Missions frequently take place under the cover of darkness, thus a mission-critical requirement of this special timepiece was an increased amount of Luminova on the dial for exceptional night-time visibility, requiring development of a unique application process.
We are honoured they approached Linde Werdelin for this. It’s a perfect fit for both.
Hundreds of hours of Research and Development have gone into the Oktopus watches, including tough tests to see how much force the timepieces can withstand, ensuring that they can all be certified to a depth of 300 metres. Putting them on the wrists of Frogmen, though, is an entirely different challenge. The Oktopus was enduring brutal punishment on the wrists of Denmark’s toughest men. Yet, it survived and passed their test.
Thus we have the Oktopus Frogman: it is available exclusively to those who have served for Frømandskorpset, and personalised with engravings of their personnel number and the year they joined this elite unit. Future Frogmen, yet to join these elite ranks, can also acquire an Oktopus Frogman. This will be a lasting partnership.
Recommended further reading: Morten Linde’s behind-the-scenes look at how the collaboration began.
It has been a unique challenge to design a piece specifically for members of an elite diving unit, but we have emerged as strong partners and are hugely honoured that our timepiece celebrates their sense of fraternity and community.
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This article was originally published on Linde Werdelin's The Lab: