THE FLIGHT OF TIME

THE FLIGHT

OF TIME POCKET WATCHES FOR men, and pendant, brooch and chatelaine-style watches for women were rare in the inventories and shop windows of esteemed watchmakers in the mid-19th century. But by the time Louis Cartier began working with his father in 1898, the fashion was beginning to change. Intent on producing watches that were pieces of jewellery fi rst, with technical brilliance a close second, he sought out manufacturers of movements who could meet his stylistic P demands. These collaborations led to the invention of new timepieces that met his aesthetic and technical standards. The Santos The evolution of pilot watches has remained was the fi rst watch designed with a truly modern case that had in sync with that of the innovators, pioneers attaches intégrées (incorporated lugs). and trailblazers who wear them. Cartier made the fi rst Santos prototype in 1904 at the request of his friend, the Brazilian aviation pioneer Alberto SantosWORDS DEBBIE HATHWAY Dumont, who wanted to be able to time his performance in fl ight more accurately than he could with his pocket watch. That meant being able to see the dial while he kept both hands on the controls. Cartier responded with the fi rst purpose-designed watch that could be strapped to the wrist with a leather band and small buckle. The Santos-Dumont watches being released this year echo the aviator’s drive to ‘go further’, consistently pushing the

OPPOSITE Breitling Aviation Pioneers squad member Scott Kelly wears the Super Avenger Chronograph 48 Night Mission RIGHT Breitling Super Avenger Chronograph 48 Night Mission FAR RIGHT Breitling Avenger Chronograph 45 Night Mission

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Breitling Avenger Swiss Air Force Team Limited Edition; Breitling Aviation Pioneers Squad member Rocío González Torres wears the Avenger Chronograph 43; Breitling Avenger Automatic 45 Seawolf THIS PAGE TMario iactum sena, unulius vivit. Equam iae ne novente ssent, que mo es et quamquam popon te denihilicur acrei ex sessesigna, quam omantempl. O te conunu intiore in di, cae nos oc, Ti. Quit, qua nos nos et, Ti. Ibus perfes audam simis locrum

limits as he persisted in inventing fl ying machines for his own pleasure as well as the entertainment of his Parisian spectators.

Each new Santos-Dumont watch beats to the rhythm of the 430 MC mechanical movement with manual winding. Santos-Dumont’s original drawings are engraved on the case back.

Meanwhile, Breitling’s redesign of the Avenger connects it to two other collections – the Aviator 8 and the iconic Navitimer – to mark an evolution of the brand’s pilot’s watches. The Avenger is equally at home on the wrist of a drone specialist, supersonic jet pilot or astronaut.

Breitling provided onboard clocks and other equipment for airplanes in the 1930s and 1940s. They also have the honour of being the fi rst Swiss wrist chronograph in space. On 24 May 1962, US astronaut Scott Carpenter wore a Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaute on his Mercury space fl ight.

LEFT TO RIGHT Bell & Ross BR03 92 HUD; IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Top Gun Edition Mojave Desert; IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Top Gun Edition Mojave Desert

‘Many of the Bell & Ross collections have been inspired by aeronautical instruments and pay tribute to timekeepers used by the military throughout history.’

This year, Longines re-issued a chronograph inspired by a 1930s design. The Longines Avigation BigEye, notable for its dial clarity and oversized 30-minute counter, is now available in titanium with a petrol-blue dial. It is powered by an exclusive chronograph movement fi tted with a silicon balance spring, and comes with a fi ve-year warranty.

The brand’s association with aviation dates back to 1919, when it was appointed offi cial supplier to the International Aeronautical Federation. It was then that Longines began to develop accurate and reliable instruments so that aviation pioneers could time their record-setting feats.

Many of the Bell & Ross collections have been inspired by aeronautical instruments and pay tribute to timekeepers used by the military throughout history. In addition, the company customises watches for elite units.

These tool watches adapt the circle-square-style clock design from an airplane cockpit for wearability on the wrist. The BR 03-92 HUD by Bell & Ross features the Head Up Display (HUD), which is a transparent glass screen that displays all the visual detail a pilot needs to complete a mission.

There have been many wonderful iterations of the IWC pilot’s watch since the fi rst was revealed in the 1930s. One of the latest to catch the eye at this year’s Watches & Wonders Geneva was the Big Pilot’s Watch Top Gun Mojave Desert Edition. The Top Gun Edition watches are engineered for the most extreme aviation conditions and refl ect the colour of the most unforgiving desert terrain. The cases are made with specially formulated sand-coloured ceramic, which boasts a Vickers rating second only to that of diamonds. 

Top performers

Richemont (which owns Cartier and IWC, among others) remains in fourth place on the FY2019 luxury goods sales ranking published by Deloitte in its Global Powers of Luxury Goods 2020 report. Breitling moved up fi ve places to rank 67th. The company also ranks 19th among the top 20 fastest-growing luxury goods companies, FY2016-2019. ABOVE Longines Avigation BigEye

LEFT Cartier SantosDumont Precious Set, a limited, numbered edition of 100 pieces, crown set with a ruby cabochon and engraved case back

BELOW

Cartier Santos-Dumont’s extra-large model is a limited edition of 500 pieces, engraved with Santos-Dumont’s fl ying machine ‘N°19’