No autopilot for Alpina with new world-first innovation

Alpina has partnered with Watch Angels to launch the Startimer Pilot Chronograph Automatic IFR, a mechanical aviation tool featuring a world-first complication to assist pilots during critical Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) holding patterns.

The IFR Complication in the watch is housed entirely within the 44.5 mm ceramic bidirectional bezel and internal flange, and calculates holding pattern entries without drawing from the movement.

The timepiece integrates local time, a 12-hour chronograph for tracking flight phases, and a dedicated UTC hand for cross-border navigation.

“This partnership with Watch Angels is a world first in that it brings a major technical innovation to the Startimer Pilot collection alongside the launch of our new case design,”said Oliver van Lanschot Hubrecht, Alpina’s brand director . “The features of this timepiece will win over professional and private pilots alike, as well as all lovers of technology and fine watchmaking. It’s an outstanding piece that combines performance, innovation and style”.

Watch Angels was founded in 2019 and is both a watchmaking platform and an R&D lab dedicated to innovation in time measurement. 

“It would be a mistake to think that the Startimer Pilot Chronograph Automatic IFR is inspired by the world of aviation, or that it merely borrows from aviation aesthetics; it is absolutely a watch for professional pilots, with a function that is unprecedented in watchmaking,” said Watch Angels CEO Guido Benedini. “This is a fully operational instrument in which nothing is for decorative purposes only. Naturally, it cannot replace an aircraft’s certified on-board systems, but it provides redundancy (a vital asset in aviation), giving the wearer peace of mind and allowing them to focus on what’s important in highly complex environments in which self-control and discipline are top priorities.”

Coming with Alpina’s new 43mm steel case design (10 ATM), a blue sunburst dial with luminous numerals, and an automatic movement with a 62-hour power reserve, the Startimer Pilot Chronograph Automatic IFR is limited to 300 pieces and opens for pre-sale today on the Watch Angels website for CHF 4,290.