LIST: Cleared for take-off – 10 of the best pilot’s watches

First things first, just what is a pilot’s watch? While I think most of us could instantly recognise one, there isn’t an exact formula like there is when it comes to dive watches — and there’s a lot more to it than simply being a watch a pilot would wear. Ultimately (since you asked), a pilot’s watch is one that is instantly readable at a glance, whether in simple time-only form, or more complicated with functions that a pilot might find useful. And while we can’t all be Maverick or Iceman (no one wants to be Goose), we can still live out the fantasy and feel the need for speed with these … Breguet Type XXI 3817 Andrew developed a serious watch crush on the Breguet Type XXI back at Baselworld 2016 and honestly, I can see why. Those creamy old-world Arabic numerals, the iconic fluted middle caseband, and a view to the first-rate flyback dual-time movement inside. Talk about masculine bravado. RRP $17,800 Breitling Navitimer 01 The icon, the legend, the chronograph with an inbuilt flight computer. The Navitimer and its typical slide rule bezel has graced countless cockpits for more than 65 years. And this year the classic is joined…

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8 years ago

Omega Seamaster Olympic Games Collection – Inspired by the Olympic Flag and Vintage Stopwatches

The 2018 Winter Olympics are about to start and Omega is celebrating 86-year as official timekeeper, as well as announcing that it will fulfil this position at least until 2032 – meaning a full 100 years of presence at the Olympics. After the gold collection introduced earlier this week, it is time to look at the other side of the price range, with the Omega Seamaster Olympic Games Collection – some nice, colourful, entry-level sports watches inspired by the Olympic Flag and by vintage stopwatches.

8 years ago

Pre-Baselworld 2018 – Bell & Ross BR03-92 Nightlum

The main objective of a pilot’s watch is to be legible, in every situation – during the day as well as at night. This means: avoiding reflections but also confusions between the indications, providing a great contrast and being luminous even in pitch black conditions. As a preview for Baselworld 2018, Bell & Ross makes a “back to basics”, with a new version of their iconic military/pilot watch that is just that: legible, first and foremost. Meet the new Bell & Ross BR03-92 Nightlum.

8 years ago

HANDS-ON: Cartier’s incredible Révélation d’une Panthère

Over the past decade, while earning its chops as a serious technical watchmaker, Cartier has demonstrated time and again its mastery of the artistic crafts – métiers d’art in the Francophone world of watchmaking. It has taken traditional techniques and gone further – for example, using straw and flower petals for marquetry. It has also remastered 3000-year-old techniques that were virtually extinct, including granulation – a manner of creating surface texture using tiny gold beads. As a result, we have seen a series of achingly beautiful dials – exquisitely detailed, a celebration of human skill. Beautiful they are, but quite serious. Cartier is not one to fool around. So, who could have guessed that the most fun watch of SIHH 2018 would have come from the grand Parisian Maison? Looking at the photographs of the watch outside Cartier’s booth, I could only think, “Huh? What’s going on here?” A watch with a panther’s face on the dial – so far, so Cartier. Pictures of a slightly pixelated or deconstructed panther’s face? Strange. You need to see the watch in reality (or at least a video) to make sense of it. It’s confounding. It’s delightful. It’s like watching a magic trick.…

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8 years ago