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█ Recently, philippe Dufour's Grande et Petite Sonnerie sold $7.63 million in self-congratulatory questions like a bombshell, which detonated the entire circle in one fell swoop, pushing the 72-year-old man who often smoked a pipe to an unshakable god-level status, which can be called the "Zeus of watchmaking". As early as the millennium Dufour began to do "simple" Simplicity, his myth has been quietly spread from the Jura Valley, this small three needles that only show hours and seconds have set an excellent result of more than 5 million Hong Kong dollars on the auction floor on the 20th anniversary of their birth, which is staggering, but it is also unexpected and reasonable. This reminds me of the equally sought-after "tool tables", where the diving watch sits in the top spot and the second is naturally the flying watch.
The originator of the flight watch is Cartier Santos, Louis Cartier's original intention was to design a timekeeping tool that can replace the pocket watch and make Brazilian pilot Alberto Santos Dumont read the time better on the plane, and now, the Santos series has washed up the lead and entered the ranks of fashion watches, I believe no one will treat it as a flight watch, especially when it is still a precious metal model. At the moment, everyone has their own answer to the flight chart.
Patek Philippe
Calatrava Aviator Travel Time Watch 5524G
Ref. 5524G
In 1936, not long after the end of World War I and before World War II had even begun, Patek Philippe launched two Stellar Timepieces (Ref.P0844), which were marked with 360 degrees in the center of the dial, and the hour hand had the role of indicating angles in addition to the hours - Philip van Horn Weems and Charles Augustus, officers of the United States Navy Lindbergh's joint efforts allowed the pilots to locate their positions according to the stars, relying on radio signals, sextants, and stellar time watches to accurately calculate the latitude and longitude of their locations. However, it did not receive orders from the military as other brands that started with flying watches, after all, Patek Philippe was already known as the "watch king" in the 1930s, and the high price was not within the reach of the budget-strapped army, even in the Arab countries with rich ones.
Ref.P0844
Seventy-nine years later, the first Cala Zovar Aviator Travel Time watch, the Ref. The 5524G was launched at Baselworld 2015 and was mixed (the same familiar plot appeared after Lange released the first steel watch series, ODYSSEUS in October 2019), a 42mm gauge diameter, a white gold case, an aquamarine dial, a dual time zone display and each with a separate day and night display (9 o'clock local time, 3 o'clock for the time of origin), and a 6 o'clock pointer date display (displaying the date in 3 days). It is equipped with the Cal.CH 324 S C FUS self-winding calibre and is stored between 35 hours and 45 hours. At that time, he was once known as the "Terminator of Zhenli", and then you all know that the wage of nearly 420,000 yuan is naturally invincible, and Zhenlishi is also thriving in his own field, and who makes him PP? Three years later, the rose gold Ref. 5524R was launched, and the following year, the great killer Ref. The 5520P, on the basis of the dual time zone display, adds a 24-hour alarm clock device and a digital display alarm clock, and the price is as high as 2 million yuan - this should be the watch worn by the airline CEO, and the civil aviation pilot is gradually drifting away.
Ref. 5520P
The 5524G is not so much a flying watch as it is a two-time watch, and like the 5230G World Time, it is for business travelers who have successful careers and fly all over the world, perhaps the obsessive-compulsive accountant played by "Big Ben" in "Accounting Assassin", or the human resources expert played by George Clooney in "In the Clouds".
"The Accounting Assassin" Ben Affleck
Nowadays, the position of the 5524G is somewhat awkward, younger watch buyers may turn their attention to the more casual and playful Ref.5960/01, the older will choose the traditional and formal Ref.5905R, of course, the 5524G can definitely be regarded as a pilot's watch graduation, after all, the Luminous Painted Button needle and the rugged Arabic numeral time marker have revealed the orthodox flight watch gene.
IWC
Mark XVIII
The Mark 11 is the soul of the IMC collection, which is neither expensive nor difficult to find. Personally, I've always thought that Mark 12, 15, 16, and so on can be ignored, at least until I started with Mark 11.
——schen
IWC is a watchmaking brand with a true military watch and aviator watch pedigree, with the only surviving results of the "Twelve Diamonds" (Buren, Cyma, Eterna, Grana, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Lemania, Longines, IWC, Omega, Record, Timor and Vertex) that still provided military pilot watches to the Royal Air Force (and British countries) after the war.
Mark 11 is a benchmark in flight charts – whether it's a military version of Mark 11 or a civilian version of Mark XII. The latter created many "firsts" in the series: the first Mark with a calendar display; the first Mark with an automatic winding movement (Cal.884 from Jaeger-LeCoultre); the first Mark to use IWC as the brand mark... Once launched in 1994, the evaluation and sales from the watch owner and the industry were very gratifying, and it was a hit that year. After all, Mark 11 sold more than a thousand pieces in the private sector after completing the military order, which is simply not enough for collectors and enthusiasts to share, and Mark XII's appearance and interior are almost the same as those of its predecessors (36mm, Jaeger-LeCoultre movement), can it not be sought after? Five years later, the Mark XV increased the diameter of the watch to 38mm, the movement was replaced by the ETA 2892, and a white plate was added, which was speculated to be specially launched for female consumers.
Mark 11
Mark XII
In 2006, with the addition of Richemont, the Mark series was also updated in Vientiane, and IWC turned its inspiration to the B-ubr watch made for the Luftwaffe around 1940, introducing the completely different Mark XVI. Mark XI's distinctive flat-headed hour and pencil minute hands were replaced by diamond-shaped needles, which were placed on B-ubr's huge 55mm dial, and although they were harmonious and attractive, it was awkward to move to Mark XVI's only 39mm size body, especially it was not symmetrical like B-ubr, and it always looked incongruous. In addition to the hands, the 6 o'clock and 9 o'clock hour markers have been removed, making the dial look at first glance with a sense of déjà vu penetrated by a meridian. The diamond needle configuration is still in use today, and the B-ubr's onion-headed crown was also used in the subsequent Big Pilot series.
IWC B-ubr Observation Table
Mark XVI
After several iterations, in 2021, the Mark series has come to mark XVIII, you will find that after mark XVI, the diameter of the watch has hardly changed, 40mm stainless steel case, accustomed to the diamond needle that feels very handsome, the bold Arabic numerals hour marker and the iconic triangle hour marker, as well as the white disk, the blue disk ("The Little Prince" special edition), the brown disk ("Anthony Saint Exupéry" special edition) for selection, There is even a 36mm version (but not the orthodox Mark XVIII). In my eyes, this is the best IWC watch – a small wrist-friendly size, a traceable design, a beautiful price. Who says you have to keep up with the time, the complexity, the special section?
The current Mark series always gives me a kind of civilian image of a civilian who is usually eye-catching and sharp, and can shoot a few shots at key moments, and the dr. Grant played by Kurt Russell in "The Highest Crisis" immediately comes to mind, who is in danger and is ordered to save the passengers on the Boeing 747 held hostage by extreme terrorists in a limited time.
Supreme Crisis by Kurt Russell
Breitling
Aeronautical Chronograph 806 1959 replica
At Basel Haute Horlogerie 2019, Breitling launched a replica based on the 1959 Navigialr Ref.806, limited to 1959 pieces. At least among breitling players and fans I know, it is regarded as the best Navigialr in recent years.
There are two reasons for its flawlessness:
1. Reproduction as is.
Except for the luminous layer coated on the pointer and time marker, the replica is almost identical to the original Ref.806, and even the outermost beaded rotating scale has not changed - 94; the 41mm gauge diameter was the standard large watch size in the 50s, but now it is just right to wear it. So many elements are crowded in this corner, and they don't feel forced. The 12-point fighter-like curved triangular arrow is the finishing touch, and the modern Navigialr has shrunk it down and appeared a bit weak. The slightly yellowed font, coupled with white hands and outer rings, suddenly rises in an indescribable ancient meaning, as if you can still smell the ink fragrance.
Ref.806
2. The return of the wings.
In 2018, Breitling began to use the new version of the brand initial "B" as a trademark, and the font "B" was placed on the watches of the Puya series, which complemented each other, and on the Navigialr positioned in the professional flying watch series, it was "not ancient". Therefore, after a year of "losing wings", fans can see the return of the classic LOGO, of course, they can't help but be happy. Most importantly, it uses the earliest version of the wings logo!
Navitimer's iconic flying slide, even a layman, can recognize at a glance that it is a watch worn by pilots who dare to take responsibility, pursue precision, and have excellent psychological qualities, remember The Royal Air Force pilot Farrell played by Tom Hardy in "Dunkirk"? In my imagination, he should be wearing a Jacket to fight the Evil Axis.
The ocean of the flying table is too vast, there are many categories, a wide range of factions, these two years not only have pearls and jade current, but also many rising stars, it is difficult to elaborate in an article, please look forward to the next article. █