As we approach Father’s Day, we continue our series of features on memorable watches from Baselworld 2017, in a number of popular categories, with a look at five high-flying timepieces aimed at professional aviators and historical aviation enthusiasts.
The Alpina Startimer Pilot Automatic, a vintage-inspired piece launched in 2011, was relaunched this year with a new dial design, additional case options, and very affordable price tags. The watches’ 44-mm cases have a simple and sturdy design, equipped with an oversized crown typical of today?s pilot watch designs and a solid caseback featuring an engraved Alpina logo. Depending on the dial color option, each watch will come on either a black, dark blue, or brown leather strap. On their dials, the watches have an outer minute track with the Alpina red triangle at the 12 o?clock position, along with applied Arabic numerals broken up with rectangular markers at each of the quarter hours. The hour and minute hands have a distinctive, curved design, while the simple red seconds counter again features the brand’s logo as its counterweight. There?s a subtle, integrated date window at the 3 o?clock position that is hardly noticeable upon first glance ? a useful feature that helps maintain the aesthetic focus on the rest of the dial. Inside the watch is the automatic caliber AL-525, based on the Sellita SW 200, which holds a 38-hour power reserve and features special finishing by Alpina. Best of all for cas...