IWC Schaffhausen Honors a Lost War Time Hero

Luxury watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen is celebrating the life of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry this month with the debut of their new Pilot’s Chronograph named after the French poet, humanist and aviator.

The Chronograph Antoine de Saint Exupéry is at once a tribute to classical aviation and an exercise of exacting modern standards for accuracy and precision. The lustrous 18-carat red gold case belies its tolerance for extreme variations in pressure – from the low-pressure environs of cruising altitude to the crushing pressure of the ocean, all the way down to a depth of 2,000 feet.

Measuring 43 mm in diameter, the red gold case is topped by a convex sapphire crystal treated with anti-reflective coatings on both sides. With IWC’s 89361 calibre movement at the heart of it, the Chronograph Antoine de Saint-Exupéry offers the wearer readings of the date, hour, minutes and seconds on a cognac-hued dial. A flyback function controls chronograph, something which could come in handy for a private aviator or deep sea diver.

A tan calfskin strap with contrasting taupe quilted stitching finishes out the Chronograph Antoine de Saint Exupéry, offering its namesake a fitting tribute his life of learning and experimenting.

Sadly, Monsieur de Saint-Exupéry’s life of curiosity was cut short when his plane crashed into the Mediterranean in July of 1944. He remains a national hero in France to this day.

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Source and photos courtesy IWC Schaffhausen press release.