Two two-tone Navitimers, one for him and one for her, land in the US on October 22 and you can only buy them at Watches of Switzerland. Prices start at $9,450.
The Breitling Navitimer was built to help pilots do arithmetic at altitude. On October 22, it gets a gold bezel and a green dial, and you’ll only find it at one retailer. That day, Watches of Switzerland unveils two new Navitimers at its SoHo location in New York, a 43mm chronograph and a 32mm ladies’ model. Neither is sold anywhere else in the US.
Both are two-tone, with 18k yellow gold paired with stainless steel. The bezel and the center links of the bracelet are gold. The rest is brushed and polished steel. The gold sits against a green dial on the larger watch and a mint one on the smaller. It’s a mix the all-steel versions never quite manage, and it gives a tool built for pilots a warmer look.
The big one
The Navitimer B01 Chronograph 43, Ref. DB01381A1L1D1, keeps every code the model has carried since 1952: the circular slide rule, the notched bezel, three chronograph counters and the AOPA wings at 12 o’clock. What’s new is the dial, a deep green with gilt baton indexes, and gold-toned hands and subdials.
Green is a smart choice here. It looks richer than the usual black or blue, and it makes the yellow gold look chosen rather than showy. Pilot’s watches rarely get called warm. This one does.
The case is 43mm across and 13.69mm thick, with water resistance to 30 meters. Inside is Breitling Manufacture Caliber 01, the brand’s in-house, COSC-certified self-winding chronograph. It beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and holds a power reserve of about 70 hours. It times events to a quarter of a second, with 30-minute and 12-hour counters, and it also gives you small seconds and a date. A sapphire caseback shows the movement off. The crystal is cambered sapphire, glareproofed on both sides. The crown is non-screw-locked with two gaskets, and the steel-and-gold bracelet tapers from 22mm to 18mm.
The small one
The Navitimer 32, Ref. D77320E71L1D1, takes the same design in a more jewelry-minded direction. The mint green sunburst dial has diamond hour markers. The slide rule bezel is replaced by a fluted gold one, which is the detail that makes the watch. It’s pale green against yellow gold, and it looks like a bracelet that happens to tell time.
The Navitimer can be a lot of watch on a slim wrist. At 32mm, this one keeps the character of the original without the bulk. Water resistance is 50 meters. Breitling’s fact sheet lists Breitling caliber 77, COSC certified, and the bracelet narrows from 16mm to 14mm. If you only have time to try on one of the two, make it this one. It’s the more surprising watch of the pair.
What it costs
The B01 Chronograph 43 is priced at $17,500. The Navitimer 32 is $9,450. The smaller watch costs a little over half as much, which makes sense when you look at what each one contains. The chronograph carries 13.15g of precious metal and the 32 carries 8.53g. The larger watch also has the in-house chronograph movement, and the smaller one has diamonds on the dial.
The two aren’t meant to compete. They’re sold as a pair, a classic pilot’s chronograph and its smaller counterpart, made for the same jewelry box. That’s a fair guess at the customer: someone buying for two wrists, or someone who wants a gold-and-steel watch with some history behind it and doesn’t want the usual black dial.
The exclusivity matters in practical terms too. Both watches are sold in Watches of Switzerland showrooms and on its US website, each on a matching bracelet in stainless steel and 18k yellow gold. If you want one of these particular colors in this particular metal mix, that’s the only place to go.
Via Haute Time
