A second time zone can be shown in many ways, offering a wide range of options for watch designers. As we approach holiday travel season, we showcase some notable timepieces with second-time-zone (GMT) displays in this article from our 2019 Special Design Issue (on sale now).
A watch with a second time zone can elbow its way into the limelight and loudly announce that its owner is a globetrotter. But the additional display can also hide discreetly and become visible only when the wearer commands it to appear. Intuitively readable 12-hour dials are available, as are unambiguous 24-hour scales and all sorts of unconventional displays. The target group plays an important role because a second time zone can provide worthwhile service to very different types of people. Flight Time

Pilots, who frequently land in different countries, use UTC (Universal Time Coordinated) exclusively for radio communications, flight plans and logbooks. A watch with a second time zone is tremendously helpful for aviators. And it?s not surprising that some watches were developed especially for this purpose and are styled like traditional pilots? watches.
The best-known representative of this genre is surely the Rolex GMT-Master, developed in 1955 in response to a list of requirements specified by Pan American World Airways. At that time, the distinctive rotatable bezel was the only option for setting the time in the second zone because the 12-hour and 24-hour hands could not be reset independently. T...