The watches of Bell & Ross may be Swiss Made but the heart and soul of the brand are very much entrenched in France. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that for an aviation partnership, in 2021, they chose the Patrouille de France, an elite unit of the French Air and Space Force. This year marks the 70th anniversary of this prestigious aerobatic display team that has built its reputation on the prowess of its pilots.
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To celebrate this momentous milestone with Patrouille de France, Bell & Ross launched a limited edition of their BR 03-92 which offers a dial in a mesmerising shade of blue, a colour that mirrors the team’s Alpha Jet. The beautiful dial is combined with subtle elements of colour in the form of the yellow Patrouille de France insignia, a beautiful logo to indicate its 70th anniversary and the colours of the French flag represented on a ring around the dial. This vibrancy is balanced nicely with the white Arabic numerals and hand tips to ensure the utmost legibility. It is, after all, designed with the input of the pilots.
The 42mm width of the square BR 03-92 case is made of the same high-tech ceramic found on previous models and it has also been given a matte black coating to ensure the case maintains a utilitarian look. On the back side, the designers have taken special care to fit in all five aircraft that have flown since the creation of the Patrouille de France in 1953. This includes the Thunderjet which was flown during the team’s debut, the Alphajet which has been in service since 1981, and the Ouragan, Mystère IV and Fouga Magister which have helped forge their legacy. These planes, built not for their destructive capabilities but rather for agility and manoeuvrability in the skies, have very interesting silhouettes adding to the uniqueness of the caseback.
The BR 03-92 Patrouille de France 70th Anniversary is powered by the solid BR-CAL 302 movement and the entire watch is water resistant up to 100 metres. Whether you are a Francophile, aerophile or just looking for a new shade of dial colour, this new launch from Bell & Ross will appeal to at least one, if not all the mentioned demographics. And at only 999 pieces available worldwide, you can be sure that it will quickly ‘fly’ off the shelf.