When it came to information, less was definitely not more; but then, Breitling did have a lot of facts to cram onto a page. “Breitling figures on the instrument panels of the 15 leading aircraft manufacturers or airlines” and “[the Breitling Navitimer was] specially recommended to airmen by the Aircraft Owners’ and Pilots’ Association (AOPA)” are just two of the useful nuggets vouchsafed.

Breitling, which was established in 1884, was already a leader in chronographs (stopwatches) by the turn of the century, when powered flight and even the wrist watch were still in the future. Then, in 1936, the need for accurate timekeeping in the air inspired Willy Breitling, the company founder’s grandson, to launch a chronograph created specially for aircraft. And one of the first customers was the RAF.

And, in 1952, it created the nec plus ultra of aviation watches: the Navitimer, which, as well as telling the time and being a chronograph, was an “aerial navigation computer”.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk