2018 - Big Pilot's Watch REF. IW501001, a new movement for a new era With the launch of the Big Pilot's Watch Ref. IW501001, IWC has brought its flagship pilot watch series into a new mechanical era. The IW501001 inherits the classic appearance of the IW500912 and retains its iconic silhouette. The IW501001 still uses a 46.2 mm stainless steel case, is 15.6 mm thick, and is equipped with an oversized crown. Its simple and practical dial layout, like the early Big Pilot's Watch, gives people a solid, stable and fully functional feeling. The black dial retains clear Arabic numerals, date display at 6 o'clock, power reserve display at 3 o'clock, central second hand and IWC's iconic sword-shaped hands. In addition, subtle details such as improved printing technology and simple layout have also quietly enhanced the modern sense of the design.
Under the dial, however, it features a significantly redesigned movement, the IWC-manufactured 52110, part of the next-generation 52000-caliber family introduced in 2015. This movement marks a major step forward from the upcoming 51111 (which powers the IW500912). While both movements offer an impressive seven-day power reserve and are equipped with IWC’s signature Pellaton automatic winding system, the 52110 brings a host of upgrades that redefine long-term durability and precision.
Most notably, this movement features ceramic components for the winding pawls, automatic wheel, and rotor bearings, making the winding system virtually wear-free. The addition of a double barrel (instead of the 51111’s single barrel) ensures more stable torque transmission when the power reserve is full. In addition, the frequency has been increased from 3Hz to 4Hz (28,800vph), improving timekeeping stability. The aesthetics of the movement also attract attention.
Since the original Ref. IW5002 was launched in 2002, the Big Pilot’s Watch has been introduced in more than 150 models, including special editions, limited editions and complication versions. Most of these time and date (and power reserve) models have been aesthetically different, offering different dial designs, introducing new themes and materials, but always retaining the basic functions of the Big Pilot’s Watch. In this review, we have selected some of the limited and special editions that we think are important. We are very sorry if your favorite model is not included, but we first introduce what is unanimously considered to be the most unique and elusive interpretation of IWC’s Big Pilot’s Watch series - the Ref. IW5003 “Markus Bühler”. It is outstanding not because of its most complicated mechanical structure or the most gorgeous decoration, but because of its story, aesthetic gesture and the absolute rarity of its existence.
2008 – BIG PILOT’S WATCH REF. IW5003 MARKUS BÜHLER
Conceived in 2003 by then-apprentice Markus Bühler as an entry for the Richemont Group’s watchmaking competition, the concept took root at IWC and eventually developed into a limited edition of just 12 pieces. Each piece is assembled and finished under Bühler’s supervision and that of a team of apprentices, an origin story that lends the watch an authentic, workshop-born quality rarely seen in commercial production. The Bühler edition appears to be a traditional Big Pilot’s Watch, retaining the original Ref. 5002’s sturdy 46.2 mm stainless steel case, riveted leather strap, oversized crown and “Baumuster A”-inspired dial. Its most distinctive feature, however, is visible on the small seconds subdial at 9 o’clock: a miniature aircraft turbine, spinning quietly with the seconds hand. A small red dot on one of the blades serves as an indicator.
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The movement is perhaps the most surprising part of the whole story. Rather than IWC’s own Calibre 5000, the Markus Bühler watch is powered by a modified Unitas 6498, redesigned and renamed Cal. 64900. But the movement is understated yet classy. The turbine motif on the case back replaces the traditional ratchet, serving as both a decorative element and a mechanical metaphor. To echo the aesthetic of a jet engine, Bühler repositioned the stripes on the movement bridge so that the circular waves radiate outward from the turbine rather than from the center, evoking the explosive power of a jet engine.
For a watch from such a prestigious brand, the rest of the finishing is breathtaking. The bevels are gently polished by hand, the countersunk holes bear clear milling marks, and the gears of the transmission train have clear circular graining. In 2023, IWC returns to the Bühler design with an upgraded movement and a platinum case, launching the Big Pilot’s Watch 43 Tourbillon Markus Bühler. This watch retains key elements of the 2008 original, but is equipped with a self-winding tourbillon movement with a flying tourbillon cage in the shape of turbine blades.
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and The Little Prince Edition
IWC Schaffhausen has a long-standing and sincere partnership with the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Youth Foundation. Founded in 2009 by descendants of the pilot and author of The Little Prince, the foundation is dedicated to promoting education and combating illiteracy, with a particular focus on children in underprivileged communities around the world. As we will see, this partnership has created many “firsts” in the IWC collection, many of which debuted in the “Le Petit Prince” or “Antoine de Saint-Exupéry” collections.
The collaboration began in 2009 with the launch of three memorable large pilot watches: white gold (IW500420), red gold (IW500421) and stainless steel (IW500422). All three watches feature an elegant tobacco-colored sunray dial and numerals that match those on the 1936 IWC “Pilot’s Special Edition” Calibre 83 movement, with an intriguing detail: the letter “A.” is cleverly placed next to 9 o’clock, a nod to Anthony himself.
The collaboration also gave rise to the IWC Le Petit Prince collection, including the stainless steel (IW500908) and red gold (IW500909) large pilot watches based on the 5009, both with midnight blue dials and the same numeral font as the Saint-Exupéry watch that would become the emblem of the collection, both released in 2014.