Flying
has always been linked to watches, ever since Louis Cartier made
the first aviation wristwatch for his friend, Alberto-Santos-Dumont
in 1904. The look of classic pilot's watches is very hot right now
andand even though many watches will never see the inside of a cockpit,
most pilot's watches are designed to satisfy the conditions a watch
would see when flying - extremes of temperature, shock, condensation,
vibration and more.
If
everyone who owns a pilot watch could fly a plane, we wouldn't need
Delta or United Airlines. Like bomber jackets or aviator sunglasses,
pilot's watches are beloved for their flyboy, "right stuff"
looks. But they're also of practical use in a cockpit (or anyplace
else that calls for a sturdy, easy-to-read timepiece).
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TAG
Heuer
Formula 1 Men's Watch
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Tutima
is the official watch supplier to NATO and is the exclusive manufacturer
of the official Eurofighter Typhoon watch (the Eurofighter is the
newest NATO fighter plane). Breitling is known as the watch of choice
for many pilots and its line is chock full of aviation engineering
breakthroughs. Other companies that specialize in pilot's watches
include IWC, Ernst Benz, Chase-Durer, Oris, Hamilton, Luminox, Fortis
and more.
Pilot's
watches also offer a very clear, simple, oversize design - easy to
read in the cockpit or anywhere else.
They
usually have easy-to-grip crowns, large dials, big numerals or dial
markers and luminous hands, so they're legible in dimly lit cockpits.
Furthermore, they're rugged enough to survive airport security (including
those conveyor-belt rides through the x-ray machine.
Many have chronograph functions or rotating bezels
for measuring elapsed time. Many, too, show both local and home time.
As for those circular slide rules on some styles: they're great for
pre-flight planning of fuel use and flight times (or for converting
euros to dollars fore some shopping after you land). Plus, they look
totally cool.
