Pilot watches

[Guest Hydro130]

FYI, not everyone (not most, if any, from what I gather) are getting the Casio G-shocks issued anymore. I got one 10 years ago, and it was a piece of junk -- I never wore it once. Folks who have gotten them more recently are pretty much split on if they fly with them or not.

Bottomline, I wouldn't plan on getting an issued G-shock these days...

Hopefully some peers will chime in if I'm getting that wrong!

Cheers, Hydro

[UPT-hopeful]

I just got initial issue of equipment at Vance. No G-shock (but, I didn't ask for it either...)

[ 10. June 2006, 17:46: Message edited by: UPT-hopeful ]

[Guest Kawen]

mine bought himself a Citizen Skyhawk after graduation...maybe eventually he'll get a Breitling, but those are on the pricey side.

[ 15. June 2006, 11:36: Message edited by: Kawen ]

[AFCS_Actuator]

The Seiko Flightmaster is a pretty nice looking watch. It has a flight computer on it that works, but isn't useful. It looks pretty sweet though. I got mine on eBay for about $100. It's a $350 watch. I like the high end G-Shocks as well.

[Guest Hydro130]

Here's what I flew with...

This is what I wore when I was out pimpin'...

Cheers, Hydro

[Guest AFwife62406]

Does anyone have any "updated" opinions on which watch would be good for a Christmas present? Is the Citizen Skyhawk Titanium still decent or are there better watches out there now? I wasn't sure if things had changed at all from 2004 as far as aviator watches go. I would like to get one for my husband for Christmas. Sorry for reviving the thread, but I thought it would be better than starting a new one on a topic that has already been discussed. Thanks in advance.

[HossHarris]

If you're looking to buy a watch online ... I'd highly recommend princetonwatches.com.

They are an authorized dealer for everything they sell and generally sell for 50-60% of the "jewelry store" list price.

I've bought citizens and seikos from them and have been extremely satisfied (STS).

[LJDRVR]

I've been flying with the Omega Speedmaster Professional since 1999, and have enjoyed it immensely. Best off all, it's not some cliche like the submariner. There's some history behind it, which makes it kind of unique. It's also a 1950's design, so the styling is a bit retro, entirely appropriate for those of you who fly 1950's airplanes.

[Guest SpectrePilot]

Save money and keep it simple: Swiss Luminox.

(Unless he actually digs gaudy?)

[LRU-6.9]

I've had great luck with the Citizen's. I own 2, a navihawk that is 10 years old and a Nighthawk I got just before my last deployment. One of the nice things about the Nighthawk is that the sliderule is enclosed so it dosent get all gummed up.

[Guest Pan130]

I have the B-1 also, it is great. By careful of fakes. A guy in my squadron has a fake...he thinks it is real and can't accept the fact. He bought it on EBAY...sucker. It is missing some stuff that the real one has and his has some tick marks are on the wrong side. Just pay the $$ and go to a good store...in the USA.

[Guest Wxpunk]

I've had my SkyHawk for 2 1/2 years now and I'm still very happy with it. I actually use it operationally now. Also, I still get compliments a few times a month from both flyers and non-flyers. The last compliment came from a clerk at a Ralph Lauren outlet in Gulf Shores.

A nice watch is a great gift that the recipient will get many years of use out of while always remembering who gave it to them. :D

Who's Yur Daddy?

-----------

Wxpunk <------ This guy.

[john]

ok bumping this back to the top for another question. are analog watches really the way to go. not that i cant read them, just like digitals better. anyone out there use suunto or high gear or anything like that? thanks.

[pawnman]

Citizen makes some really nice watches for decent prices. I'm not sure about online sales, though.

Helzberg carries them, and you can find a Helzberg at any mall. I love my Skyhawk with the Eco-Drive.

[Guest Showtime]

I've had a Suunto for a couple years now...no complaints, no issues, lots of features. Current watch is a Suunto Vector, AFSOC issued.

[Guest Fuse]

Helzberg carries them, and you can find a Helzberg at any mall. I love my Skyhawk with the Eco-Drive.

Helzberg and JCPenny's were the only places I could find that had the version of Skyhawk I wanted, JR3060-59F. (and even then I had to drive an hour to find a helzberg or JCPennys that had it) It's a titanium version where the triangular grips on the E6B go in instead of out. I have a small wrist so that small detail makes it look smaller on my wrist than the other skyhawks. JR3000-51F is the steel version. I think they look much better.

I'm very happy with mine.

Edited July 12, 2007 by Fuse

[Guest Safe&Clear]

The only difference between an "aviators watch" and a typical divers watch is the "whiz wheel"/ flight computer installed on the outside. From what I´ve seen over the last few years, new pilots have no idea how to use this "old school" device anyway, so what´s the point?? These kids look at me like I´m a freak when I whip mine out in flight (so to speak).

A standard Swiss Army with a time-lapse dial around the outside and maybe the date or additional timezone window is more than sufficient for todays "pilot"....

[Hacker]

The only difference between an "aviators watch" and a typical divers watch is the "whiz wheel"/ flight computer installed on the outside. From what I´ve seen over the last few years, new pilots have no idea how to use this "old school" device anyway, so what´s the point?? These kids look at me like I´m a freak when I whip mine out in flight (so to speak).

A standard Swiss Army with a time-lapse dial around the outside and maybe the date or additional timezone window is more than sufficient for todays "pilot"....

Somehow I've been able to suffer through nearly 2,000 hours of military and civilian flying without ever, ever needing to use an E6B in flight. Not even in Tweets.

[WeatherManC130]

I have a Citizen Nighthawk Titanium that I bought down in the Cayman Islands. I really like it!

WxMan

[Guest sabini]

So the real question was never resolved here... although Omega seems to be out since you apparently must attest to being a 11F (what about don't ask don't tell?). Breitling has Travolta and his 707 in some of their print ads, so you'd think they're out for a broader avaition audience. When I was casual, my boss told me Breitling gave a super discount and even put squadron graphics on the watchface just to get them on pilots' wrists.

Is there definitive word on how to work this/eligibility for non-fighters? Do you just call up the Breitling factory?

Thanks.

[HuggyU2]

I've designed two watches for the U-2. Both were Breitlings. Anyone,... even heavy guys!,... can get a watch though them. But you'll need a minimum of 25 or 50 orders (depending on the situation). I'm in the process of creating a third watch through Breitling; should have it by year's end.

[Guest bravodelta79]

Reviving an old thread with dead links and the consensus that G-Shoch watches aren't issued anymore.

I'm curious as to what everyone flies with and why. Do you really need a watch to fly in the military? (To fly IFR on the civ side, there is the required clock in the aircraft.) I have a few watches I use for different reasons and thought with UPT a distinct possibility (as long as Brooks goes well), it would be something to think about.

Thanks for any input!

[The Kayla]

Reviving an old thread with dead links and the consensus that G-Shoch watches aren't issued anymore.

I'm curious as to what everyone flies with and why. Do you really need a watch to fly in the military? (To fly IFR on the civ side, there is the required clock in the aircraft.) I have a few watches I use for different reasons and thought with UPT a distinct possibility (as long as Brooks goes well), it would be something to think about.

Thanks for any input!

I think you need a watch for when you fly, you have to do certain checks every 15 minutes (not too sure about that timing, just giving you an example).. I'm not too sure how you could go about doing those with out a watch though... At least one person needs to have a watch in the class room.. to give out the time for some reason.

[Steve Davies]

I think you need a watch for when you fly, you have to do certain checks every 15 minutes (not too sure about that timing, just giving you an example).. I'm not too sure how you could go about doing those with out a watch though...

Kayla

All aircraft have clocks in them, so I don't think that not having a watch is going to affect your ability to do regular ops checks.

BD

This thread has some good info on Aviator Watches

[Danny Noonin]

well as far as clocks in the airplane go, it depends...

the one in my jet is a wind up type that was installed in 1973. I'll get GPS time eventually once I start up, but as a fighter dude, you live and die by time, even before the jet gets started. We brief, step, start, etc all on an exact time. Airplanes like the Tweet still tell time by sundial.

I don't know a single fighter dude who does not have a watch on his wrist hacked to the US Naval Observatory Master Clock.

dudes wear anything from $20 wal mart specials to $3000 custom Breitlings. All personal preference. Some dudes go all digital, lots go with a watch that has analog AND digital on there. Most dudes avoid watches that are all analog, since they are difficult to hack (i.e. synchronize to the exact time) in the brief. It's nice to have something that has glow in the dark hands and/or a light up digital display for night flying.

I'd say the average dude has either a G-shock type digital watch or a very large metal digital/analog combo watch. Some dudes wear a nice watch most of the time, but swap over to a crappier one when they fly so they don't get the good one all hacked up.