Soyuz TMA-06M

The Soyuz TMA-06M was one of the first rockets recovered by Werenbach. At that time, only the steel from the steam turbines was imported to Switzerland and used to produce watch casings.

The main goal of the expedition was to continue research on how life in space affects human organisms, studies on fish and their sensation of gravity and to monitor the impacts of solar radiation on Earth’s climate. Maintenance work was also undertaken on the ISS.

For our second visit to Kazakhstan, we succeeded – after six months of negotiation – in persuading the suppliers that we were not, in fact, spies. Materials exported included aluminium bars (parts of the rocket’s outer shell that had been melted down on site) and deconstructed steel steam turbines. The heavy goods vehicle carrying the cargo from Soyuz TMA 06 arrived to Switzerland in January 2013, the same month the company was founded. Just a few months later, in autumn 2013, we were able to present our very first aluminium rocket watch.