133 Longines An extremely rare and oversized, automatic Pilot's wristwatch with center seconds, 24-hour black dial and extract from the archives, made for Swissair.

Estimate: € 25.000 –⁠ 50.000

In the golden age of aviation—the 1950s, when commercial flight was rapidly transforming from a luxury into a global norm—a handful of manufacturers rose to meet the technical demands of this new frontier. Among them stood Longines, chosen by Swissair to develop a purpose-built tool watch for its flight crews. Not merely a commercial reference later adopted by professionals, this was a watch born from a direct commission. With a robust, oversized steel case, an easily gripped onion crown, and a stark 24-hour dial for precise legibility at high altitude and low light, the result was an object of pure functional poetry. Confirmed by the Longines Extract as having been delivered directly to Swissair—not through a retailer—this timepiece is part of a rare and elite series tailored exclusively for the airline’s cockpit crews. The engraved caseback, proudly bearing the issue number “75,” adds yet another layer of authenticity to its professional pedigree. Remarkably well-preserved, the present example stuns with its untouched integrity—its engraved caseback remains crisp and deeply defined, while the dial reveals only the faintest whispers of age, a testament to decades of careful stewardship. This charming and exceedingly rare exhudes a palpable sense of history, transporting us to an era when form and function danced effortlessly at 30,000 feet.

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