Zenith Pilot Type 20 Squelette
Embodying top-flight craftsmanship and watchmaking techniques, the new Pilot Type 20 Squelette raises the legendary Calibre 5011K to the rank of a true masterpiece of ethereal architecture.
This famous pocket-watch movement has been entirely skeletonised in order to reveal the exceptional mechanism, while avoiding any compromise in terms of its resistance and reliability. This construction is ‘airy’ in two key respects. On the one hand, its skeleton-working stems from a particularly demanding and meticulous art performed using the historical bocfil (tiny hacksaw) technique that stems from a tradition of more than 200 years of workmanship.
This extremely delicate task consists of engraving and hollowing out the movement by hand with a constant concern for perfect aesthetic and functionality. This is a dizzyingly complex operation, especially given the imposing size of the balance wheel and barrel which exert considerable tensile and traction forces.
On the other hand, the nimble hands of skilled and experienced artisans create an aviation-inspired architectural motif featuring sleek lines evoking aircraft turbines or wings. Its finely curved lines are enhanced by fine sandblasting and hand-finished angles, all revealed through the transparency of the sapphire crystal dial and case-back.
Topped by a blue enamel bezel, the 60 mm-diameter case carved in sapphire provides plenty of scope for an exceptional finish. Its gold bezel and lugs are hand-engraved, forming a geometrical motif inspired by the fuselage of Louis Blériot’s planes.
The new Pilot Type 20 Squelette watch – displaying all the distinctive identity codes of Zenith aviator watches including a broad ratcheted crown enabling easy adjustment with pilot’s gloves, as well as stylised hours and minutes hands sweeping over large impeccably legible numerals – is entirely in tune with the DNA of the collection.
At the heart of this breathtakingly ethereal composition, the gold hands as well as the hollowed and blued Arabic numerals echo the blue enamel on the bezel, displaying the essential functions of the entirely skeleton-worked manual-winding Calibre 5011K.
It embodies the glorious origins of the 5011 pocket-watch calibre that distinguished itself by its remarkable precision from the 1960s onwards and equipped marine chronometers and pocket watches. The inherently exclusive Pilot Type 20 Squelette is issued in a strictly limited five-piece edition.
Technical details
Model: Zenith Pilot Type 20 Skeleton
5-Piece Limited Edition
Reference: 04.2422.5011/78.C714
Movement
5011K, manual
Calibre: 22“` (Diameter: 50 mm)
Thickness: 10.00 mm
Components: 134
Jewels: 19
Frequency: 18,000 Vph (2.5 Hz)
Power-reserve: min. 48 Hours
Functions
Hours and minutes in the centre
Small seconds at 9 o’clock
Power-reserve indication at 3 o’clock
Case, Dial & Hands
Material: Sapphire with blue enamelled white gold bezel, entirely hand-engraved. Hand-engraved white gold lugs. White gold crown
Diameter: 60 mm
Opening diameter: 47.00 mm
Thickness: 18.50 mm
Crystal: Domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment on both sides
Case-back: Transparent sapphire crystal
Water-resistance: 3 ATM
Dial: Sapphire
Hour-markers: Blue transferred Arabic numerals
Hands: Blued gold
Strap & Buckle
Black alligator leather strap with protective rubber lining
White gold pin buckle
