Longines Gives Its ’30s-Inspired Pilot Majetek a Titanium Makeover

A favourite of pilots and jet-setters alike, Longines continues to be one of many manufacturers — watchmakers or in any other case — most symbolic of the early days of aviation. In 1908, the Swiss agency debuted its authentic twin timezone watch, which was the primary of its type, nevertheless it stored pushing ahead from there with a plethora of pilot’s watches launched over the a long time. And in recent times, the watchmaker has tapped these classic references as inspiration for his or her newer releases, such because the Spirit Zulu Time, the Hydroconquest, and the Pilot Majetek — which is presently getting a titanium-focused replace for 2024. 

The Historical past of the Pilot Majetek

Final 12 months, Longines regarded into its historic catalog, discovering a particular 1935 mannequin commissioned by the Czech Air Power to help its pilots. They needed the brand new watch to sport a rotating bezel with a triangular arrow to mark a given flight’s elapsed time. Together with the bezel, the mannequin additionally had larger readability with its massive 40mm case diameter — fairly massive for the time.

Sustaining an vintage aesthetic, the 2023 Pilot Majetek nonetheless gave some fashionable updates comparable to a 43mm chrome steel cushion case with a fluted bezel, together with lumed minute and hour fingers and a seconds subdial on the backside. Nonetheless, this time round, the triangle nostril on the bezel didn’t rotate with the crystal over the face.

Longines Majetek Pioneer Version Fundamentals

Evidently, vintage-styled or not, 43mm for a metal pilot watch is kind of hefty. As such, detractors had been fast to complain in regards to the bulk of final 12 months’s Pilot Majetek. A technique watchmakers have mitigated heavy timepieces is to swap in light-weight supplies — namely, titanium. 

Dubbed the Pioneer Version, this new replace for 2024 retains most issues the identical as final 12 months’s model: the general design, the 100m of water resistance, and the COSC-certified Longines L893.6 Caliber computerized motion with 72 hours of energy reserve. Nonetheless, implementing grade 5 titanium for the case reduces its weight by 1.77oz (now 2.77oz whole).

Giving the watch a barely extra fashionable attraction, the titanium additionally begs for a changeup within the dial design, barely. Somewhat than the gold-bronze coloured hour markers over the black dial, they’re now a shade of grey, glowing blue at nighttime. Likewise, the fingers now function grey lume fills. Eliminating one of many three “colours” brings uniformity to the general aesthetic. Adorned to the case is a rugged (and apparently inflexible) black material strap.

​Spec Sheet

Pricing & Availability

In contrast to the metal model, the Pilot Majetek Pioneer Version is proscribed to 1,935 items, and likewise dearer with a $5,000 price ticket (versus $3,750). Head over to Longines’ web site to be taught extra.

Longines Pilot Majetek Pioneer Version

Longines swaps in a titanium case for its Pilot Majetek from final 12 months. Initially in metal, the 43mm timepiece was impressed by a 1935 mannequin commissioned by the Czech Air Power.