The case is engineered from stainless steel and features brushed and polished surfaces, sapphire crystal glass and a soft-iron inner case to protect the movement from magnetic forces. This, paired with a smaller lug to lug distance of 49.2mm reduced from 51mm, allows the case to sit nice and compact on the wrist.

The case still measures in at 40mm in diameter, but its height comes in a little smaller at 10.8mm (compared to the 11mm of its predecessor). The new IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XXįor the case, the new IWC Pilot’s Mark XX watches offer a slightly trimmed down architecture compared to the previous Mark VXIII watches. The new IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XX is no different, offering all the austere design qualities we have come to know and love with a subtle few amendments to the spec-sheet. While each design has offered new traits and technologies, they have all been styled as a military tool watch, a perfect everyday companion for both land and skies. Before today, the last IWC Mark watch was the Mark XVIII introduced six years ago as a Antoine De Saint Exupéry Edition and Laureus Good for Sport Edition. Over the years, we have seen the IWC Mark watch evolve to include variants like the legendary Mark XI designed for RAF navigators, the Mark XV with its larger case and the Mark XVI which adopted the flieger hands of the Big Pilot’s Watch. The launch of the IWC Mark X also convinced many to call the original Special Pilot’s Watch the Mark IX as its predecessor. For this, IWC created the first Mark series watch, the Mark X, which would grow to become a legend within the IWC Aviation collection. Shortly after, the British Ministry of Defence commissioned twelve watch brands, later known among collectors as the dirty dozen, to create military watches for the wrists of their troops. It dealt with powerful magnetic fields, extreme temperatures and vibrations and offered a clear, luminous dial for easy readability in the cockpit. The very first pilot’s watch from IWC was the originator of the Mark series, produced in 1936 and named the Special Pilot’s Watch. A Brief History of the IWC Pilot’s Mark Series In case you missed it, here’s everything you need to know about the premier IWC Pilot’s Mark XX.

There’s been no press release, no big campaign, just the subtle inclusion of a pair of handsome pilot’s watches on the IWC Schaffhausen website. The new IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XX is exactly that. They’ll only be spotted by true fans and feel like hidden easter eggs to those that buy them.

Sometimes the best watch releases are those that are done quietly.

Iwc pilot watch