Pilot watches were
made for the quest of flight in Europe in the beginning of the 20th
century. The world’ first pilot watch was made by Cartier, Louis Cartier to be
precise. The Santos watch was made by Louis Cartier for his friend Alberto
Santos-Dumont to wear in his flights in 1906 so he did not have to look at his
pocket watch when controlling his aircraft. The watch first went on sale in
1911.
In 1912, Louis Blériot flew across the English Channel with a Zenith pilot watch which featured oversized Arabic numerals, an oversized crown and luminous hands and dial. From 1939, the Zenith Zenith Montre d’Aéronef Type 20 became a standard instrument for French aircraft. Zenith then successfully made its name in the history of aviation.
However, what made pilot watches so popular were the two world wars. British pilots began to use pocket watches in WWI. In WWII, five manufacturers including A. Lange & Söhne, Wempe, Lacher & Company/Durowe (Laco), Walter Storz (Stowa) and IWC started manufacturing the legendary 55mm B-Uhren for the German air force. Today, you can find vintage pilot watches made by these companies sold at hefty prices.
These B-Uhren were
large, easy to read and anti-magnetic and they laid down the foundations for
modern pilot watch designs.
Our
recommendations:
1.
Breguet
Type XX
The Breguet Type XX connects aviation with
the brand’s family history. The Breguet Type XX Aeronavale can trace its roots
back to the 1950s when the French Naval Airforce made a special order for 500
pilot watches with “flyback” function. Until today, this function remains one
of the very recognizable features of the Breguet Type XX Aeronavale.
The watch features a 39mm case, a size which
is just about right for everyone’s wrist. It has a polished case and a polished
bi-directional bezel. The case is very well finished with coin edge. The dial
is extremely legible with three sub-dials displaying the running seconds, the
minute counter of the chronograph and the hour counter of the chronograph.
This watch is one of the most celebrated
pilot watches in production. It comes with a brown alligator strap or you can
choose the bracelet version, which is equally elegant.
The watch retails at around 80k HKD. You can
expect more than 20% discounts at HKWF. However, If you want to get a
second-hand one, you may as well go for those which have tritium dials. The
vintage feeling of those watches are just irresistible.
The Zenith Type 20 Annual Calendar is
absolutely a bang for your buck. It is a pilot chronograph that has annual
calendar display and retails at around 75k HKD before any discount.
The watch is a reissue of the aforementioned
Zenith Montre d’Aéronef Type 20
with modern functions. It has a 48mm stainless steel case with a huge onion
crown. The oversized hands and Arabic numerals offer very good legibility,
which is a must for pilot watches. The display of the date is at 6 o’ clock and
the display of the month and the day is at 3 o’ clock. The two sub-dials are
the chronograph’s minute counter and the running seconds.
The watch comes with a brown alligator
strap. It is a blend of modern functions with retro style. On the wrist, it gives
you a lot of wrist presence. It is not a watch to be ignored in any way.
1.
IWC Big
Pilot Heritage 48 (Heritage 55)
IWC has in 2016
updated its pilot watch collection. Adhering to the brand’s design of the 1940s
pilot watch, the Big Pilot Heritage offers two choices on case size, 48mm and
55mm. While the 55mm version is exactly the size of the original B-Uhr, the
48mm version may be more wearable for most who are not Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The case of the Big
Pilot Heritage is in sandblasted titanium, which helps reduce the weight of the
watch. The hands are in blued steel and it has a seconds sub-dial. The Arabic
numerals are in beige color.
The strap that
comes with the watch is a brown calf-skin pilot-style strap which has rivets on
it. It is a watch that reminds you of the WWII era and one that is absolutely
better than a Steinhart, a Stowa or a Laco.
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