Bell & Ross will extend its Aviation collection with the launch of three limited-edition watches at BaselWorld next month.
As with its three predecessors, the watches take direct inspiration from aeroplane cockpits and have been named BR01 Heading Indicator, BR01 Airspeed and BR01 Climb.
Each watch has been limited to 999 pieces. The first 99 pieces will be sold in a control panel-inspired collector’s box containing the six timepieces from the Aviation collection, the new launches along with a BR01 Horizon, BR01 Altimeter and BR01 Turn Coordinator.
The BR01 Heading Indicator has been inspired by the tool of the same name that is used to indicate what course a plane is on. The dial is made up of three independent concentric discs, graduated for the hours and minutes while the seconds are displayed in the centre on a disc that is not graduated but features a yellow marker. The hour reading is indicated by the yellow triangle, which appears on the outer hours’ disc. Minutes are read from the middle disc.
BR01 Airspeed mirrors the cockpit control that measures an aircraft’s speed in relation to the air it is moving through and allows the plane to be flown in a controlled way without visibility. To enhance legibility the hour, minute and second graduations have been separated to promote the minutes on the main dial – as in the original instrument – while the hours are displayed in the centre. The three colours that indicate levels of criticality in the original instrument – green, white and yellow – also appear on the watch dial and indicate the zones by quarters of an hour.
The BR01 Climb watch has been inspired by the vertical speed indicator, an instrument that indicates to the pilot whether the plane is ascending, descending or level by reading atmospheric pressure. This watch has a traditional time display and has a power reserve where the reading for the vertical speed indicator would be on a real aviation instrument.
