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Watchfinder.co.uk Ltd, PO BOX 1368 Maidstone, ME14 9WE

Company no. 04524723

vat no787 562 376

Registered Office Address: 15 Hill Street, London, W1J 5QT
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Breitling

Established 1884

Once a manufacturer of cockpit instruments, Breitling has always had an affinity with the aviation industry. It has moved with time and technology to provide pilots with equipment ranging from the slide rule calculator bezel to the emergency distress signal transmitter. To purchase a pre-owned Breitling watch is to own a true aviation pioneer. Read more

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Breitling

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  1. Breitling
SuperOceans Watches 7218 SuperOceans Watches 7217 SuperOceans Watches 9361 SuperOceans Watches 4234
SuperOceans Watches 7217 SuperOceans Watches 9361 SuperOceans Watches 4234
SuperOceans [43]
Navitimers Watches 3869 Navitimers Watches 44977 Navitimers Watches 49194 Navitimers Watches 41236
Navitimers Watches 44977 Navitimers Watches 49194 Navitimers Watches 41236
Navitimers [32]
Avenger Watches 26934 Avenger Watches 33140 Avenger Watches 20198 Avenger Watches 13154
Avenger Watches 33140 Avenger Watches 20198 Avenger Watches 13154
Avenger [24]
Chronomat Watches 2342 Chronomat Watches 9631 Chronomat Watches 46549 Chronomat Watches 48629
Chronomat Watches 9631 Chronomat Watches 46549 Chronomat Watches 48629
Chronomat [27]
Colt Watches 33937 Colt Watches 25021 Colt Watches 33406 Colt Watches 3557
Colt Watches 25021 Colt Watches 33406 Colt Watches 3557
Colt [15]
Bentley Watches 7269 Bentley Watches 26283 Bentley Watches 52270 Bentley Watches 53760
Bentley Watches 26283 Bentley Watches 52270 Bentley Watches 53760
Bentley [14]
Cockpit Watches 26338 Cockpit Watches 3972 Cockpit Watches 6341 Cockpit Watches 33673
Cockpit Watches 3972 Cockpit Watches 6341 Cockpit Watches 33673
Cockpit [13]
Aerospace Watches 5600 Aerospace Watches 26149 Aerospace Watches 8974 Aerospace Watches 19013
Aerospace Watches 26149 Aerospace Watches 8974 Aerospace Watches 19013
Aerospace [12]
Transocean Watches 23752 Transocean Watches 21340 Transocean Watches 40320 Transocean Watches 27421
Transocean Watches 21340 Transocean Watches 40320 Transocean Watches 27421
Transocean [15]
Galactic Watches 8465 Galactic Watches 18966 Galactic Watches 52240 Galactic Watches 31556
Galactic Watches 18966 Galactic Watches 52240 Galactic Watches 31556
Galactic [8]
Montbrillant Watches 17173 Montbrillant Watches 14976 Montbrillant Watches 17342 Montbrillant Watches 13170
Montbrillant Watches 14976 Montbrillant Watches 17342 Montbrillant Watches 13170
Montbrillant [8]
Emergency Watches 22471 Emergency Watches 33958 Emergency Watches 54735
Emergency Watches 33958 Emergency Watches 54735
Emergency [2]
Blackbird Watches 4664 Blackbird Watches 7150 Blackbird Watches 24082
Blackbird Watches 7150 Blackbird Watches 24082
Blackbird [1]
Chronospace Watches 32008 Chronospace Watches 50468 Chronospace Watches 28422 Chronospace Watches 19032
Chronospace Watches 50468 Chronospace Watches 28422 Chronospace Watches 19032
Chronospace [8]
Airwolf Watches 7184 Airwolf Watches 17370
Airwolf Watches 17370
Airwolf [1]
Chronomatic Watches 21359 Chronomatic Watches 18884 Chronomatic Watches 12792 Chronomatic Watches 18883
Chronomatic Watches 18884 Chronomatic Watches 12792 Chronomatic Watches 18883
Chronomatic [3]
Headwind Watches 16635
Headwind [1]
Premier B01 Watches 45684 Premier B01 Watches 48309 Premier B01 Watches 48748 Premier B01 Watches 54248
Premier B01 Watches 48309 Premier B01 Watches 48748 Premier B01 Watches 54248
Premier B01 [3]
Aviator 8 Watches 46550 Aviator 8 Watches 42957 Aviator 8 Watches 48089 Aviator 8 Watches 42415
Aviator 8 Watches 42957 Aviator 8 Watches 48089 Aviator 8 Watches 42415
Aviator 8 [3]
Endurance Pro Watches 49086 Endurance Pro Watches 49018 Endurance Pro Watches 53732 Endurance Pro Watches 53882
Endurance Pro Watches 49018 Endurance Pro Watches 53732 Endurance Pro Watches 53882
Endurance Pro [2]
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New Arrivals

Breitling Navitimer A23322
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Breitling
Navitimer
A23322
£4,050
Box: No Papers: Yes
Year: 2008
Breitling Chrono-Matic 49 A14360
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Breitling
Chrono-Matic 49
A14360
£2,830
Box: No Papers: Yes
Year: 2009
Breitling Chronomat K13050
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Breitling
Chronomat
K13050
£4,750
Box: Yes Papers: No
Year: Approx. 1987
Vintage
Breitling Superocean Automatic A17316
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Breitling
Superocean Automatic
A17316
£2,425
Box: Yes Papers: Yes
Year: 2019
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Breitling History

A specialist in scientific measurement and timing devices, Léon Breitling opened his workshop in the Jura Mountains of Switzerland in 1884 to make exceptional watches. Even by watchmaking standards, his creations were intricate and complicated, and the success of his chronographs required Breitling to move to a larger factory on Montbrillant Street, La Chaux-de-Fonds, in 1892.

In 1914, Léon passed away, and his son Gaston inherited the business. He continued to develop the company’s bestseller, the chronograph, which was eagerly adopted by the military and police forces. The development of the brand’s watches continued through the First World War until Gaston’s death shortly after, leaving the business without a leader for five years before Gaston’s son Willy stepped in to assume command.

Willy pushed the company into the aviation industry, successfully winning a contract to provide watches to the British Air Ministry. The timing and conversion rulers available on the brand’s watches made them suitable for pilots who needed to make in flight calculations for speed, distance and fuel use. The slide rule bezel aided the conversions; it was first seen on the Chronomat, then later on the Navitimer and Montbrillant.

This affiliation with aviation became the brand’s crowning jewel, and before long, Breitling watches were being used not only by the Royal Air Force, but by many commercial pilots as well. The popularity of the brand also extended into space, when Lt. Commander Scott Carpenter wore a specially developed Navitimer on the Mercury Atlas 7 mission. He had commissioned the watchmaker to replace the standard 12-hour clock with a 24-hour one, a feature that made the watch far more practical in space. That watch became the Chronomatic Cosmonaut.

The Chronomat was introduced in 1941, and in 1969 it received the world’s first self-winding chronograph movement, developed with Heuer and Hamilton. It signalled a peak in development that, unfortunately, wasn’t to last. The success of the brand’s watches, particularly the mechanical chronographs, was brought to an end by the introduction of quartz movements in the late seventies, and in 1978, the company was put up for sale.

Breitling was then taken over by Ernest Schneider, himself a pilot, who developed new watches using quartz technology. The Academy, Jupiter, Pluton and Mars watches incorporated a traditional handset along with digital displays, allowing clear and functional use by the pilots who wore them. The design of the brand’s watches was undertaken with the consultation of aviation professionals, and their success evolved into the modern B-1, Aerospace, Chronospace, Airwolf and Emergency.

The watchmaker’s dedication to aviation captured the imagination of watch enthusiasts around the world. From rugged adventure watches like the Avenger, the Colt, the Galactic and the Cockpit, to sea-fairing ones such as the Superocean and Transocean, Breitling watches catered for every possibility. In a joint association with Bentley motorcars, the Breitling Bentley collection offers something for those who want a touch of extra heritage and luxury.

The introduction of SuperQuartz extended the accuracy of the brand’s quartz watches even further, providing ten times the accuracy of a standard Breitling quartz movement. This ongoing dedication to providing accurate and usable pilots’ watches has set the Breitling name in stone within the aviation community, and the brand’s style and innovation has done the same with the general public. The introduction of its first in-house chronograph movement in 2009 confirms that the brand will continue to be popular for a long time to come.

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Watchfinder.co.uk Ltd, PO BOX 1368 Maidstone, ME14 9WE
Company no. 04524723  |  vat no 787 562 376
Registered Office Address: 15 Hill Street, London, W1J 5QT
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