![]() The CK2129 came to be in the earlier part of 1940 when the Ministry decided that it needed watches with rotating bezels to help pilots time certain events while on mission. Omega was at the forefront of production of watches to the Royal Air Force during the war, with some 110,000 units being delivered to the Ministry Of Defense alone. For this reason, it most definitely deserves a spot on the top five. It is an extremely influential watch that is recognizable in any circle of watch enthusiasts. It was just as likely that one of these was to be spotted on the wrist of an infantryman as it would have been to see one on the wrist of pilot. This was the everyman’s watch for the British military. Secondly, Grana only produced a total of 1,000 during the war, and there is no accurate account of how many of those may actually still be out there. Collectors beam at the thought of owning the whole lot of the “Dirty Dozen”, yet it is nearly an impossible task, as many aren’t left in the wild due to them being destroyed in large numbers during the 1970’s out of fear of the dangers that lie within Radium. Britain’s watchmakers were too busy supporting the war effort back home, so instead, twelve Swiss companies were enlisted to create the British These watches had basic requirements from England, it had to have luminous hands, had to have chronometer certified movements, and of course they had to be waterproof. The British WWW SeriesĪt the start of Great Britain’s involvement in the war, new watchmaking practices were being adapted to create watches that would be waterproof, thus eliminating any need for a soldier to be overly cautious about what was on his wrist. This article is not meant to give an in depth look at all of their history, but a general overview instead. Keep in mind that there were countless variations of pilot’s watches during WWII, but the following five have left a major imprint on history itself. I want to share with you, the reader, five of what I consider to be the most representative of the best and brightest that watchmakers had to offer the aviator during the Second World War. There was no room for error when your life possibly depended on being at the right place at the right time. ![]() ![]() They had to be the most precise instruments possible while also maintaining a high degree of robustness. New types of watches were created with the pilot in mind. The men piloting these steel beasts needed the absolute best tools that watchmaking had available to offer. By the time WWII had taken off, a new kind of warfare was already becoming a determining factor of how maps were won: aviation. ![]() The Second World War saw the introduction of many advancements to watch technology due to necessity of an ever changing battlefield. ![]()
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