The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Hi All!

As A Result Of Purchasing An IWC Mark XVI - A New Interest Has Peaked Within The Recess Of My Mind - Flieger Watches! However, Very Little Information Comes Up When Googled. This Came From A Posting In Watchuseek:

Flieger definition

It means pilot´s or aviator´s watch. Most are inspired (if they are) by pilot´s watches of WW II.

There have been two designs of Flieger watches, also know to be "Beobachtungsuhren" or "B-Uhren" (observation watches) produced by only 5 brands (IWC, Stowa, Wempe, Laco and Lange & Söhne). The specifications (for both Baumuster 1 and Baumuster 2) have been defined by the "Reichsluftfahrtministerium" (RLM), the "Imperial Air Ministry".

Due to those specifications all B-watches had the following features in common:

A case diameter of 55 mm
Marked on the back with FL 23883 (FL = flight, 23 = navigation)
Equipped with large crowns in order to be used with gloves
Hacking movement (the second hand stops when pulling out the crown / essential for a precise time setting)
Breguet balance spring
Regulated and tested as chronometers
Long leather strap (to be worn on the sleeve of a flight jacket).

There have been two different types of dials:

Type A (Baumuster A) from 1940 to January 1941
a classic dial with numerals 1 to 11 and the triangle with two dots at 12

Type B (Baumuster B) starting in January 1941
Big minute numerals from 5 to 55 and a small inner circle with numerals for h, at the position of 60 min a triangle and a line on its top.

I Can Not Believe That This Is All Their Is To The Subject!

I Am Hoping That The Members Here Can Point Me In The Right Direction Where I Can Learn More Of The Subject And If Possible Can Recommend Any Books On The Topic.

Are Their Any Forums That Exclusively Deal With Flieger Watches?

In addition Glashutte Original Makes The Senator Navigator Series - However, According To The Limited Information They Are Not One Of The Original Five Companies. As A Result Do They Have Any Connection To One Of The Aforementioned Watch Companies Or Another Historical Connection In The Story Of The Flieger Watch Or Are They Simply Making A Product?

My Last Question May Be Dumb - If IWC Is A Swiss Watch Company Why During The Final Days Of WWII Was It Bombed & Destroyed By The Allies When Switzerland Was & Continues To Be A Neutral Country?????

Thanks For Your Prompt Replies In Advance! Hope You Do Not Think These Are The Ramblings Of A Mad Man!

Best Regards!

Enezdez

_________________
IWC - Big Pilot 5002 - 01
IWC - Pilot Chrono 3717 - 04
Panerai - 183
Omega - Speedmaster 145.012 / 67
Rolex - Explore II (Black Dial) - 216570
Rolex - Explore I 114270
Blancpain FF 5015

None that I know of but all the boards I dip into have people interested in Flieger watches.

"It was a mistake". Since Schaffhausen is only about a mile from the border with Germany, night raid, no GPS, it's probably true.

Of course we do! But we're all a little bit mad!

_________________

For more information on identifying Breitling replicas, please visit my web site
http://f4buz.com/watches/breitling/fakes/fakes.html

have a look at this link it will make you
http://www.qahill.com/tz/b-uhr/b-uhr.html

Thank you both for your responses!

Best Regards,

Enezdez

_________________
IWC - Big Pilot 5002 - 01
IWC - Pilot Chrono 3717 - 04
Panerai - 183
Omega - Speedmaster 145.012 / 67
Rolex - Explore II (Black Dial) - 216570
Rolex - Explore I 114270
Blancpain FF 5015