aviator gents world time pilot watch white chronograph

This style of watch is characterised by a rotating centre seconds dial and models are still in production today. Shortly after landing in Bourgeut outside Paris after his record-breaking 33 hours and 30-minute flight, Lindbergh worked with Longines to develop the Angle Hour watch, a refinement of the Weems watch that allowed pilot to maintain the precision of the watch by adjusting the time via the oversize crown while listening to minute radio beeps, thus eliminating potential navigational errors. The Swiss watch company Longines timed Charles Lindbergh’s 1927 Atlantic crossing in the Spirit of St Louis. It sold for CHF 143,000 at Phillips' Geneva Watch Auction in 2015. As pilots strove to break new records, navigation across vast expanses of sea became the new challenge.Īn original Longines Angle Hour watch dating from 1931. Luminous dials were introduced for night-time flying.Īfter the First World War, flying became more commonplace, particularly in the United States. The Mark IV and V were used to aid navigation, monitor fuel consumption and, crucially, coordinate attacks, making them essential military equipment. These watches are known as the Mark watches because of their distinctive and simple case-back markings: an arrow and the regiment of the corps. The British Royal Flying Corp issued adapted pocket watches to its pilots, mainly produced by the Smith Watch company.

But as war demanded more precise flying and therefore more accurate instruments, pilot watches became more sophisticated.

Until the First World War, aviator watches were used mainly for timing flight duration. What watches did World War I pilots wear? The outsize bronze 48mm case houses the brand’s in-house automatic Elite 679 calibre, and every detail harks back to the early days of military air combat. Zenith continues to make aviator watches, such as the one above and the Pilot Type 20 GMT (£5,200), top of article. Zenith's Pilot GMT 1903 watch features a 48mm case with ultra-light black DLC-coated titanium case that remains ultra-light despite its size.

Aviator gents world time pilot watch white chronograph