High-precision trio joins the Startimer Pilot Quartz Chronograph Big Date range

From the very beginning, Alpina has always been the kind of manufacture to build bridges between the traditional and the modern, the luxurious and the affordable, not to mention the air, land and sea. Today, with specific reference to air travel, the brand is introducing three new Startimer Pilot Quartz Chronograph Big Date designs and marking a new phase by adapting two leading complications in fine watchmaking to quartz technology: the chronograph and the large date.

There can only be one must-have; Alpina's iconic Startimer Pilot range is the only one devoted to aviation, the conquest of the skies, its history and its future. Its timepieces are tailored to pilots, offering all that flying requires: resilience, readability and precision.

Through this exercise, the mechanical watch laid the foundations for aviation-related watchmaking, more than a century ago. Many collectors remain very attached to it, but the evolution of watchmaking technology has provided another solution to pilots’ needs... quartz.

Now perfectly integrated into the Startimer Pilot range, it promises unparalleled precision, autonomy that has gone from a few days to a few years, as well as the ability to withstand the most unlikely aerobatics.

Noble complications, quartz precision

The three new Startimer Pilot Quartz Chronograph Big Date watches fall within this framework. Their large 44 mm cases feature a compax chronograph, accompanied by a large date at 6 o’clock. This is a rare complication in fine watchmaking. It enables you to display the date on two separate discs, one for the tens, the other for the units. The technique also allows for wide format windows that make reading the date as easy as can be.

With an autonomy of 4 years (48 months), each of the designs features an engraved case back, large hand-polished hands, luminescent Arabic numerals, 10 ATM (100 metres) of water resistance, a calfskin leather strap, two push buttons and a seconds hand finished with Alpina's signature red triangle, inspired by the brand’s Alpine roots.

 

One compax, three versions

The first luxurious option features a rose gold-plated case that houses a radiant navy blue dial embellished with three black counters and rose gold plated hands. It comes with a brown calfskin leather strap with off-white topstitching.

The other two affordable editions feature steel cases. The first has a clandestine feel inspired by night flying and features a midnight blue dial with black counters, emphasised by a complementary black calfskin leather strap with off-white topstitching. Setting the second steel version apart are three silver snailed counters that really stand out against the deep navy blue dial for improved readability.