For devotees of fine chronographs who are not necessarily fans of pilots’ watches, let’s immediately clarify the background of its this name. While Type 20 is a military term that has inspired the name of several watches, the first wrist chronograph for pilots was indeed ordered from Breguet by the French Air Force nearly 70 years ago. In the wake of its decisive role among the great explorers and sailors of the 19th century, Breguet thus continued to enrich its incomparable heritage in the service of airborne navigation in the 20th century. The great names in aviation and air forces around the world have placed their trust in Breguet throughout its evolution. This unique heritage is being revitalized with this twin line endowed with the latest technologies and resulting from a four-year development process.
Civilian and military heritage
While the 2057 Type 20 Chronograph pays tribute to the military heritage, the 2067 Type XX Chronograph refers to the civilian versions of the 1950s and 1960s. Both beat to the reliable rhythm (5Hz a frequency and 60h power reserve) of a new self-winding movement with column wheel and vertical clutch: Caliber 7281 for Reference 2057 and Caliber 728 for Reference 2067, both equipped with an escape-wheel, balance spring and pallet horns in silicon. The balance is held in place by a cross-through bridge that protects it in case of impacts. The flyback function has been extensively studied and optimized by innovations to the start and zero-resetting systems designed to ensure user friendliness and optimal precision. The entire mechanism is patented and guarantees a level of reliability and chronometry worthy of Breguet’s reputation. This technical sophistication would be nothing without the aesthetics revealed through the sapphire caseback, where components adorned with sunburst, snailed, chamfered and circular-grained decorations can be viewed through the ballet performed by the rotor shaped like an aircraft wing.
Sporty Chic!
Inspired by early air force models with black dials, fluted bidirectional bezels and a pear-shaped crown, the new Type 20 features two counters and mint green numerals and hands. This distinguishes it from the Type XX (civilian) models with three counters, ivory-colored numerals and hour-markers, graduated bidirectional bezel and a straight three-position crown (neutral, date, time-setting). Both are delivered with interchangeable straps (calf leather & black NATO) and are intended for devotees of high-quality sporty chic watches who enjoy reaching new heights.
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