Bell & Ross, the French watch brand with Swiss manufacturing facilities, has designed a new watch to resemble the design and complexity of the Dassault Rafale, a French fighter jet built by Dassault Aviation.
The Rafale is known for its speed, maneuverability and light weight. The “multirole” aircraft can combine air strikes and air-to-air combat, long-range air-to-air missiles, and low altitude attacks. It is designed to avoid radar detection while having its own advanced radar system.
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| A pilot wearing the Rafale BR 03-94 watch by Bell & Ross with the Dassault Rafale fighter jet behind him |
The Rafale BR 03-94 watch by Bell & Ross adopts the distinct design features of the fighter aircraft. The stealth-like matte-black ceramic case is a reference to the anti-reflective tints of instrument panels in airplane cockpits. Rafale’s monochrome camouflage grey adorns the dial. The typography of the numerals mirrors the registration numbers on the plane’s fuselage.
The hands used for the chronograph functions are distinguished by orange tips. On the flange, the tachymeter scale enables speeds to be calculated, while the word “tachymeter” is written in bright orange. The auxiliary counter of the small seconds displays the distinctive silhouette of the fighter aircraft, and the Rafale signature appears at 6 o’clock. Finally, the watch is equipped with a black natural rubber strap.
The watch is available in a limited edition of 500 pieces. It was first presented at the International Paris Air Show, which will run till June 21.
It is powered by the BR-CAL.301 automatic chronograph movement.
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