The Covid quarantine drove many companies to shut down or even go out of business. But 2020 was one of Bugatti's best years ever. The French supercars manufacturer went into 2020 holding the production-car top-speed world record. Then they launched the ultra-luxurious 40-unit Divo model and sold out before production began. The hypercar company even built a likely Le Mans racecar preview, the Bolide. Finally, Bugatti announced a limited-edition aviation-themed Chiron Sport: Les Legendes Du Ciel (The Legends of the Sky).

Before World War Two, Bugatti was THE name in luxurious, race-proven hypercars. The Bugatti Chiron--its appearance dominated by a traditional horseshoe grill, C-bar "Bugatti line," and central fin--harkens back to the marque's golden era. The Legendes Du Ciel edition doubles-down on this heritage with numerous nods to prewar Bugatti design. The story of Bugatti is intertwined with the history of French Aviation: This "Legends of the Sky" Chiron is as much a tribute to flying aces as to the brand itself.

The Logo Depicts A Bugatti Type 13 Brescia And Nieuport 17 Biplane

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

A striking, hand-sketched propellor logo represents the Legendes Du Ciel edition of the Chiron Sport. The Molsheim crew has painted the spinning plane prop and car's name on the fenders, stitched it into the seat headrest, carved it into the center console, and even etched it into a light that projects the logo onto the ground when either door opens.

The craftsmen have sewn a hand-sketched scene, in the same style, into the leather of both doors. This detailed drawing depicts an imaginary race between the legendary Nieuport 17 biplane (1916) and the groundbreaking Bugatti Type 13 "Brescia" racecar (1922). The Nieuport was one of the most powerful, capable, and reliable planes of the first world war. After the war, many pilots turned to auto racing, and some of Bugatti's winningest drivers were ex-aces. Other aces became daredevil pilots, and many preferred the fast Bugattis, such as the Brescia, for their cars.

RELATED: Bugatti Unveils Chiron Sport Honoring Legends Of Aviation

Vintage Materials In This Chiron Special Edition

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

The Legendes Du Ciel is a 20-model special-edition run of the Chiron Sport. It shares its underpinnings with existing Bugatti hypercars. But this edition is a tour de force of immaculate material selection and artistry.

This Bugatti is finished in a matte gray paint and finished with a broad, white stripe. In a market filled with gold-plated supercars, the dull finish is a confident choice and allows the timeless lines of the car to stand on its own. The designers selected gray to best emulate the traditional bare-metal finish of the Nieuport biplane.

Instead of carbon fiber or polished wood, the car's cockpit is decked out in light brown Gaucho leather: the same color and material familiar to pilots of Nieuport planes. Find out more in Bugatti's edition-launch press release.

Other details include a tri-color "Le Bleu-Blanc-Rouge" detail on the side sills: a tribute to the wartime livery of the French fighter planes. This Bugatti is not trimmed in chrome or carbon fiber, but diamond-cut aircraft-grade aluminum. This Chiron's grill is a unique, vertical-slat aluminum unit.

RELATED: Bugatti Drops New Bolide Pics Revealing Interior And Mechanicals

The Inlays Are Engine-Turned Metal

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

The Legendes Du Ciel Chiron's door sills and interior panels are aluminum plaques etched with the car's name. The door panels and center console inlays all feature a signature Bugatti finish: engine turning.

Engine turning or engine jeweling (perlée-finish in French) is a machining technique. A machinist uses a spinning metal brush to create overlapping swirls. Jewelers prize the final pattern for creating a beautiful illusion of depth. Early in the 20th century, automakers believed engine turned surfaces were easier to clean. See Hemming's in-depth description of automotive engine turning.

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

Ettore Bugatti insisted that every engine block, and later firewall, that left his factory wore the unique pattern. As he shipped half his cars to coachbuilders as rolling chassis, the engine turning became the signature of a Bugatti. Today, it is as synonymous with the brand as the French racing blue.

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Aviation History Is Bugatti History

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

Ettore Bugatti was obsessed with aviation. In his final years, he would even prototype an airplane. But while he was living in Cologne, first building car prototypes, he met pilot Louis Blériot. The pilot was the first Frenchman to drive Bugatti's car. Blériot urged Bugatti to go into production and would remain a lifelong fan of the brand.

Later, Ettore befriended ace pilot Roland Garros and sold him one of the first Bugattis. Garros famously called Ettore "the only artist who succeeds in filling steel with life." Sadly, Garros was shot down during World War One.

Robert Benoist was a fighter pilot who survived World War One and was attracted to Bugatti. Ettore hired him as a racecar driver, promoting him to the manager of Paris sales. But Benoist insisted on continuing to race and was one of the drivers who secured Bugatti's 24 Hours of Le Mans win. During World War Two, Benoist and his Le Mans co-driver, Jean-Pierre Wimille, joined the French resistance. Benoist was, unfortunately, executed in a concentration camp.

Here's Why The Bugatti Chiron Sport "Les Legendes Du Ciel" Edition Is A Nostalgic Masterpiece
Via: Bugatti

Other pilots turned Bugatti racecar drivers included Albert Divo and Bartolomeo 'Meo' Costantini. You can read more about the pilots who shaped the brand on the Bugatti website.  It is because of men such as these that the modern Bugatti company decided to launch a special edition car to honor legendary French pilots.

NEXT: Here's Why The Bugatti La Voiture Noire Is The World's Most Expensive Car