Reply With QuoteToday they are purely gimmicks. To be honest all professional watches are gimmicks.
So rather than a quick throw on for some marketing blurb, what watches are actually used by Pilots?
Do they use Garmin's or are they using a mechanical watch? Or is there no need to use one now?!
Tom
Today they are purely gimmicks. To be honest all professional watches are gimmicks.
It would depend on what sort of flying you are doing.
If just GA mooching about for fun then a watch is needed but any would do. A chronograph is handy though.
If flying commercial a watch is handy for knowing when you need to get to the gate, a GMT is handy for making sure you don’t wake the family up when you ring home!
Before the introduction of modern nav kit a watch was essential, now it’s not but a nice to have (back up)
My pal who does short haul for BA on an Airbus of some kind uses a quartz Breitling chronograph. Not I suspect because it is an essential tool but because it is a sentimental hangover from when he flew Harriers for the Navy and it has a squadron logo on the dial, as many do.
One with GPS. Probably Ryanair’s excuse for never landing near the city they claim to fly to.
Family friend is an A350 pilot for Thai Airways. He wears a Gshock
I disagree. People still need to see the time whilst being a professional.Originally Posted by Mick P
It’s all down to personal preference, as with any watch wearing.
Bremont.
I am currently wearing an Explorer1 which is designed to wear in places of extreme temperatures, up and down mountains, jumping in rapid rivers and possibly having to wrestle the odd bear or gorilla.
I have a Sub that will go down to 4000ft which is very useful when jumping in the pool.
My GMT allows me to tell the time in 3 zones which is very useful when in Europe with a one hour time difference.
My Explorer1655 will prevent me from losing my sense of time when I am spelunking 300ft underground.
I can't imagine anyone in this age of digital watches and mobile phones ever really needing a specialist watch. They are just a gimmick and a big boys toy, no more and no less.
Have to agree with Mick here. I'm pretty sure no serious diver would chose a mechanical diver over a digital dive computer.
I suppose you could make a better case for a pilot using a gmt mechanical but I wouldn't say it was essential. They probably just use their phones like the majority of the population nowadays.
I bet the apple watch is the most common.
Good point!
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/00...475&width=1944
This was my companion when I did my PPL training
Must be enough readouts in the cockpit giving a time without looking at a watch. back in the day everything was mechanical so a gmt watch or chrono I get. But once electronics started going into the cockpit a watch must be fairly redundant
People other than you do adventurous stuff and some will wear professional ‘tool’ watches. For these people they are more than gimmicks.
Others will wear wrist computers, digital watches etc. whilst doing the same.
Some people will wear a combination of the above to go to the shop.
That is the point I was trying to make, nothing more.
I think we are saying the same thing.
I had a Damasko DC56 while it was being used by the test pilots of the Eurofighter. I actually got it from Eddie (he was an agent at the time).
https://www.damasko-watches.com/en/t...ce-space-test/
"The whole purpose of mechanical watches is to be impertinent." ~ Lionel a Marca, CEO of Breguet
You would think so.....not so much in an ancient Cessna 150.
My chrono was a backup I used to have a stopwatch velcroed onto the control yoke that I used to time between navigation waypoints.
I suspect that pilots still want to be able to glance very quickly to get the time and an analogue display suits best. If they are logging events, then they would use the aircraft clock which is sync'd with the aircraft computors.
Given the pretty decent salaries that the major airline long-haul pilots have had over the years, and the availability of decent duty-free airport discounts - I reckon many of them will have decent watches a la Omega/Rolex etc.
In that case, agreed!
I'm somewhat involved with historic aviation, there's a lot of Breilting Aerospaces to be seen, and a lot of Bremonts (due to sponsorship no doubt). Quite a few ex RAF Seikos floating about, too. Just my observations!
A previous thread along similar lines:
HERE
I am primarily in Apple IT, so one would imagine I wear an Apple Watch, but my choice is either a GMT pilot tool watch or a diver with seemingly unlimited depth.
Even though they're not related to what I do, I still wouldn't be without one or the other.
My AW is simply a gym session counter.
RAF Gen 1 or 2. Old fashioned and limited capability, but in all honesty, hard to beat in any category
Friend of mine flies for BA. could afford whatever he wanted but wears a rotary navitimerlike.
Two 'pilots:'
And The Man himself:
U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger, former military pilot and member of the House's January 6th Committee:
The best watch for flying for me isn’t a ‘pilot’s watch’ or a ‘flieger’. It is a diver’s watch. (Specifically, a diver’s watch with a date).
Go figure.
Last edited by Bravo73; 10th December 2022 at 00:02.
Exactly my experience! My flight training stopped once I’d achieved my ppl but my Fortis B-42 was essential for VFR navigation training. In an old two (or if you had more money, four) seater Cessna single engine trainer, being bounced around at the dizzying heights of almost 2500 ft on a clear day, something large and easily readable was your best friend. A bezel for timing fuel tank switches on low wing Piper upgrades also felt good.
Always fancied a blue dialled Breitling Aerospace, not for any aviation connection, but after trying one on a few years ago I didn’t connect with it as I thought I would and didn’t take it.
Jon
It reminds me of a ridiculous thread on another forum, where the OP roundly criticised the pilot of his commercial flight for 'only' wearing a Seiko SKX007, rather than something more 'professional'. Utterly bonkers, though maybe the pilot knew something about the likely need for a watch with high WR on a flight over the ocean!
The only pilot I know used to work for Virgin, but now flies private jets. He has never deviated from his rubber G-shock. These professional watches are all a gimmick really, relying on nostalgia. There are better instruments for the job now at much more affordable prices.
Last edited by Spesh; 10th December 2022 at 13:35.
Nice shot, but the barrel is hidden. Hopefully it’s not a red one
It's OK, you'll get better at flying
Reckon that's a golfing glove in a BMW 3-series
Not all pilots fly
Indeed, some even go diving.
It’s got MB on the dial. And a yellow seconds hand.Nice shot, but the barrel is hidden. Hopefully it’s not a red one
The red barrel is a given.
Thankfully, I’ve managed to keep it out of ‘the drink’. So far. 🤞It's OK, you'll get better at flying
From what did you eject, assuming you’re able to say….
Tom Cruise famously wore the Orfina Porsche Chronograph in both films. Sequel had IWC watches as well.
Once or twice in the past we've had posts from professional pilots with pics of their watches in the cockpit. But I can't remember what any of them were wearing.
This is what intrepid pilots were wearing in the early 1930s, especially on Transatlantic flights:
And their Parker fountain pens too:
Obviously there’s a story behind these watches and pens.
Luckily not, orange…this one came direct from MB.Nice shot, but the barrel is hidden. Hopefully it’s not a red one
I stand corrected. ☺️
My brother captains a Fokker 100 and he wears one of these:
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/13...g?v=1631702258
I’m a professional pilot. I am afraid the news is that I have never seen anyone wearing a Flieger, Bremont, Navitimer, IWC etc.in the cockpit.
I see a mix of watches that reflect peoples personal tastes. A handful of old Breitling Aerospaces (from the age when Breitling sold them to mil pilots very cheaply - 1990s). Some G Shocks, various models, some cheapish dress/fashion watches and quite a few divers watches of various brands. One or two Garmins (usually gifts from family - but not useful for commercial flying). For those that care about watches, the odd Rolex and Omega (various models). And amongst the younger ones, often no watch at all!
The aircraft has prominent UTC clocks on display so the requirement for a time source is for when you are not in the cockpit. However as our schedules, weather reports, flight plans, ATC co-ordination (takeoff and landing slots) are all in UTC we use it all the time when not in the cockpit. A date is needed quite often for planning and paperwork filling. When we call home, we use our smart phones or iPads which have great timezone functions. Likewise, smart phones are our alarm clocks for getting out of bed and planning rest. Chronographs are of no use for commercial flying (engine start timing is done using the onboard clocks). And no one needs a chronograph to navigate - even if flying small planes VFR the best technique is to use actual time. ie. Fly this heading for 8 mins, the time is now 1340 so my next turn is at 1348. This is because ATC may ask you your estimate for the next waypoint and you need to say “at time 1348” not “in 8 mins”. Larger planes don’t fly by timed legs or dead reckoning. Waterproof - because we swim and have baths/showers just like everyone else does and taking your watch off in a hotel room on a short layover whilst jet-lagged might lead to it being forgotten. As we sometimes go to high risk places, being robbed for an expensive watch is a consideration. Watches get bashed around in aircraft cockpits so it needs to be tough - no sticking out crowns or highly polished surfaces (that also annoy other crew when they shine in their eyes in a sunlit cockpit).
So any wristwatch or smartphone can work and the ideal (for long haul flying) is a waterproof wristwatch with date, quickset hours (for easy adjustment) and a independant UTC display and not too flash or expensive.
Last edited by petespendthrift; 11th December 2022 at 09:27.
Conversely as another professional pilot I see lots of other nice watches being worn in the flight deck, there’s plenty of Rolex, IWC, Breitling, Omega, Tudor etc
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