It’s a good week for vintage-inspired chronographs, apparently. Compared to the Benrus Sky Chief announced on Monday (another watch that was historically a pilot chronograph), the two options Hanhart offers here feel like a very solid value at about $500 less (including VAT), with a regulated movement featuring a flyback mechanism. That flyback should be a prerequisite for any pilot chronograph that’s actually used as a mechanical instrument (or backup) in the cockpit, allowing you to more quickly and accurately time your turns when your instruments fail you (and you need to rely on a map and slide rule to navigate).
The softer lume is a bit of a letdown, but with the sand dial and high-contrast hands and printing, I think the watch should be reasonably useful and legible in all but the darkest black situations. I also like that, more than just a light and modern material, the titanium case gives the sense of a more vintage watch made of a more corrosion-prone material like nickel alloys or other materials that preceded true stainless offerings in the 1930s and 1940s. Top-to-bottom, this looks like a very well-considered release.
Mark Kauzlarich
2026-03-04 14:00:00