Crowning 2021 with many novelties, Breitling redefines the standards of the sports-chronograph segment with its successful member in the chronograph product group, Breitling Super Chronomat 44 Four Year Calendar.
2021, the first half of which we left behind, witnessed many new developments in the watchmaking industry. The trade show organizations, which were restructured in the shadow of the Covid-19 epidemic that affected 2020, were prepared for 2021 in a much more planned way than the previous year.
Breitling was among the brands that preferred to announce their new models with a special event organized by itself rather than these trade shows. The brand, which met watch lovers with successful novelties, including both men's and women's models, continued to blow the wind of change that started with Georges KERN.
The model that we have focused on in our review corner today, Breitling Super Chronomat 44 Four Year Calendar, is in the Chronomat product group that emphasizes the brand's connection with aviation.
The story of the original Breitling Chronomat dates back to 1984. Based on the model produced for the Italian aviation team Frecce Tricolori, the Chronomat manages to become one of the icons of the 80s, the golden age of aviation.
Breitling, crowning the year 2021 with three different Chronomat series, carries the “big pilot chronograph” concept identified with the brand to the present day. However, while doing this, the brand prefers classic lines instead of the big, heavy, and flashy models that we often see especially in the 2000s. The models, designed with the new philosophy brought to the brand by Georges KERN, draw attention with their color and material alternatives as well as their different complications.
Breitling Super Chronomat 44 Four Year Calendar (Ref. U19320161C1S1)
The model we chose for review comes with a 44mm diameter and 15.55mm high case. The steel case, designed following the Two-Tone concept, sports an 18K yellow gold bezel, chronograph button casings, and a ceramic bezel insert with gold-toned characters. The case, which includes the crown and chronograph pushers colored per the blue theme of the model, has a sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating on the front and a solid cover on the back. Providing a comfortable wearing experience with the help of the rubber strap, the case is waterproof up to 100 meters.
The Breitling Super Chronomat 44 Four Year Calendar has a dial that looks quite complex at first glance. The reason for this situation is the movement inside the model. Designed with gold tones on a blue background, the dial hosts four different sub-dials. The model is brought to life by the Breitling Caliber 19, which we can call more like a Perpetual Calendar complication without the leap year indicator and therefore needs to be manually adjusted for February 29 every four years.
The movement, designed with the calendar module and vertical clutch mechanism added on the ETA 2892-A2 base, also includes a chronograph feature in addition to the hours, minutes, seconds, day, date, month, and moon phase functions. Despite all the features mentioned above, the automatic movement also offers a very effective power reserve time of 70 hours when fully wound.
The model comes with a blue rubber strap with a knit pattern, inspired by the Rouleaux style bracelet, which is also among the symbolic details of the Chronomat model family.
Breitling, which has come before watch lovers with a completely brand new collection in the past few years, seems to have left behind the times when it was identified with its oversize and complex timepieces as well as iced-out models. With the successful management of Georges KERN, the well-established brand, which opened a new page inspired by its glorious past, continues to consolidate its place in the world of luxury watchmaking.
