IWC Schaffhausen introduces the Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces, the latest timepiece inspired by its collaborations with U.S. Navy squadrons. This timepiece comes with a fully luminous white Lumicast dial.
Within its Professional Pilot’s Watches Program, which emerged from its partnership with the U.S. Navy, IWC develops highly specialized watches for the most discerning fast jet pilots.
The Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces (Ref. IW326905) takes inspiration from a pilot’s watch that IWC engineered for members of Strike Fighter Squadron 41 (VFA-41), also known as the “Black Aces”.
The squadron is based at Naval Air Station Lemoore in California. Originally formed in 1950 at NAS Oceana, VFA-41 is attached to Carrier Air Wing 9 and uses the radio callsign “Fast Eagle”.
The white Lumicast dial was manufactured by using a complex process in which high-grade Super-LumiNova® pigments are mixed with a binder, cast into a circular mold, and hardened in a specially developed curing process to give the material a ceramic-like durability.
The resulting solid disc is then fixed onto the soft-iron dial blank. Finally, the dial is imprinted with black indices and numerals and the “Black Aces” patch, resembling the ace of spades from a card deck. In dark chamber tests, the dial emitted a bright greenish light for more than 23 hours, taking legibility and night visibility to a whole new level.
The Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces has a black ceramic case. Made of lightweight titanium, the case-back features an engraving of the “Black Aces” twin-engine jet against a backdrop of spades.
The Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces houses the IWC-manufactured 32100 caliber. Combined with the soft-iron inner case, the movement’s anti-magnetic silicon escapement further improves the watch’s resistance to magnetic fields. Provided with a double pawl winding system, this movement offers a power reserve of 72 hours.
The watch comes with a black textile strap and a pin buckle in sand-blasted stainless steel. The Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces is available exclusively online at IWC.com.
In addition, the timepiece is eligible for registration under the My IWC care program and can benefit from a 6-year extension to the standard 2-year International Limited Warranty.
Technical details
Model: IWC Schaffhausen Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces
Movement
IWC-manufactured calibre 32100
Automatic winding
Frequency: 28,800 vph / 4 Hz
Jewels: 21
Power reserve: 3 days (72 h)
Central hacking seconds
Case
Ceramic case
Diameter: 41 mm
Height: 11.4 mm
Glass: Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Glass secured against displacement by drops in air pressure
Soft-iron inner case for magnetic field protection
Screw-in crown
Water-resistance: 6 bar
Dial
White full-lume dial, black hands
Strap
Black textile strap
