MAURICE LACROIX – AIKON Automatic Black

MAURICE LACROIX – AIKON Automatic Black - 2019

AIKON AUTOMATIC: 
«BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL»

Maurice Lacroix is showing off its dark side. The brand is adorning two automatic models from its AIKON collection in black PVD, each emblematic in its own way, with the cases, dials, hands and straps all radiating darkness.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

The AIKON Automatic Black watches catch the eye in much the same way that their colour absorbs light. Their elegant, energetic curves express the modern, strong and masculine feel that Maurice Lacroix has injected into these models. Available as an automatic three-hand watch or with a skeleton movement, their monochromatic colour, level of detail and the energy that they give off provide these pieces with a real presence on the wrist. In this way, the AIKON Automatic models gain a new aesthetic style, in keeping with the intensity of their design. Maurice Lacroix continues to produce watches whose perceived value is considerably higher than their price, even with the rarity and exceptional characteristics of these two limited editions.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

AIKON Automatic watches are descendants of the Maurice Lacroix Calypso. This steel watch was one of the brand’s iconic models in the 1980s and ‘90s and bore the same design codes that live on in the AIKON. The integrated and water-resistant case, the six-arm bezel surrounding a flat sapphire crystal and the strap marked with an applied M logo made this model with its exceptional presence the brand’s most iconic product. In 2016, Maurice Lacroix produced a contemporary reinterpretation of this iconic piece with the quartz AIKON. In 2018 automatic models continued the trend, enhanced in 2019 by this monochrome series.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

The AIKON Automatic is the heart and the essence of the AIKON collection. Clad in black, this piece reaches a new status. The power of its black PVD does not conceal the timepiece’s sandblasted treatment. Its matt finish covers its 42 mm diameter case, its screw-down crown, and its bezel with its six arms that are so characteristic of the AIKON. Its water resistance to 200 metres has of course been maintained.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

The Clou de Paris dial of the AIKON Automatic Black opens up a new way of playing with light. The same colour as the rest of the watch, it gleams with a particular vividness, as do the polished applied hour markers and anthracite hands that are coated in black Super-LumiNova. Nothing detracts from the watch’s absolute monochrome character.  

----------------------------------------
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Model:  AIKON Automatic Black

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

Reference  AI6008-PVB01-330-1

Case
Material    Stainless steel Black PVD
Diameter 42 mm
Height    11 mm
Case setting    no
Water resistance 20 ATM
Dial
Black sun brushed Clous de Paris
Indexes    Black gold plated, black SLN
Hands    Black gold plated, black SLN
Movement
Automatic Caliber ML115
Vibrations    28'800 vph / 4 Hz
Power Reserve    38 hours
Number of jewels    26
Decorations Perlage and colimaçon.
Vertical Côtes de Genève and sun brushed on rotor.
Rhodium plated.
Functions    Hours, minutes and seconds.
Date at 3 o'clock.
Strap/Bracelet
Black calf leather easychange
Buckle    Butterfly in steel black PVD


------------------------------------
Press release – 2019
-------------------------------------
---------------------------
International PR Manager
Lucie Notari
Phone +41 78 638 70 09
lucie.notari@mauricelacroix.com
--------------------------------------
Maurice Lacroix S. A.
Thurgauerstrasse 40
CH-8050 Zürich
Phone +41 (0)44 209 11 11
Fax +41 (0)44 209 12 52
info@mauricelacroix.com
-------------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - MauriceLacroix
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
www.MauriceLacroix.com

BLANCPAIN – Air Command Flyback Chronograph Edition

BLANCPAIN – Air Command Flyback Chronograph Limited Edition

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

Blancpain Air Command: rebirth of a legend

The Blancpain Air Command chronograph belongs to the select circle of legendary watches whose very rareness exacerbates their appeal to collectors. While its creation remains something of a mystery and has generated a variety of stories, its military vocation is a certainty. Considered superior to that of other timepieces of this type, its design is likewise universally admired. Blancpain is now reissuing this legendary model in a 500-piece vintage style edition and the arrival of this major new model in the brand’s collections testifies to a part of its history.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

In the early 1950s, the French Ministry of Defence was looking for a high-precision chronograph capable of meeting demanding specifications. The watch to be selected must have a black dial with luminous hour-markers and hands to maximise legibility. The movement must be equipped with a flyback function, as well as a small seconds hand. A few years later, other armed forces began looking for a similar instrument. Blancpain, which had already won over the American Navy with its Fifty Fathoms diver’s watch, drew inspiration from it to develop a chronograph for the United States Air Force. This timepiece was offered to American military pilots through the distributor Allen V. Tornek, for whom Blancpain is thought to have created a dozen watches as prototypes. The total production of Air Command chronographs was probably very limited.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

Renowned as the most sought- after military chronographs of the late 1950s, the Blancpain Air Command model has now been given a new lease of life. The 2019 edition exudes a style that is singularly faithful to that of the original. In keeping with its forerunner, intended at the time for pilots of the most modern aircraft of the era, it is equipped with a ratcheted "countdown" rotating bezel. Once set before flight, this feature enables instantaneous reading of the exact time when the fuel reserve is no longer sufficient for the plane to continue its trajectory. The time scale of the bezel, as well as the dial hour-markers and hands, are made of "old radium" type Super-LumiNova®, reproducing the orange hue of the original chronograph indications. The model bears a 30-minute totaliser at 3 o’clock and a 12-hour counter at 9 o’clock, while a tachymeter scale running around the chapter ring indicates speeds based on a 1000-metre distance.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

In order to enhance the readability of the information and accentuate the majestic nature of this collector’s watch, Blancpain has improved the dial opening compared to the original model. The face of the new Air Command is protected by a sapphire box-type crystal, a distinctive characteristic of the watches from this period that also appears on the back of the watch – a first for Blancpain. The 42.5 mm-diameter steel case thus reveals a snailed movement notably graced with a contrasting propeller-shaped red gold oscillating weight.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

A legendary timepiece deserved an equally prestigious calibre. The new Blancpain Air Command is powered by the F388B movement, whose high frequency of 5 Hz is perfectly adapted to its functions, since it enables each second to be divided into tenth-of-a-second intervals. This high frequency ensures greater accuracy, especially when timing events. Another advantage of the F388B movement is a vertical clutch that provides the chronograph seconds hand with a smooth start, as well as optimally seamless stop and start functions. It has a column-wheel system, which remains the exclusive preserve of high-end chronographs, particularly because it gives a velvety feel when starting or finishing a measurement and returning the hands to zero. The flyback function enables instantaneous zero-resetting and restarting.

Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO

Combining a resolutely vintage style with Blancpain’s latest technical advances, the new 500-piece limited edition Air Command chronograph makes a remarkable entry into the brand’s contemporary universe. This exclusive model, fitted with a patinated calf leather strap, revives the history linking the Manufacture in Le Brassus to 1950s military aviation.

-----------------------------------------
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Collection: Air Command

References:  AC01-1130-63A - Rubber strap

Model: Air Command Flyback Chronograph Edition

Case
Stainless steel
Two-way rotating steel bezel with ceramic insert and Super-LumiNova® hour-markers
Diameter:  42.50 mm
Thickness: 13.77 mm
Between horns:  22.00 mm
Back:   Sapphire crystal
Water-resistant: 30 ATM/300m/1000ft
Dial
Sunburst black dial
Movement
Calibre F388B
Self-winding Flyback Chronograph
Complications
Flyback Chronograph
Tachymeter scale
Diameter: 31.80.mm (13''')
Thickness: 6.90mm
Power reserve in hours: 50 hours
Jewels: 35
Frequency:  3.5Hz
Glucydur free sprung balance with gold regulation screws
Secured movement
Components: 297
Strap
Barennia lined with rubber strap
Brown color
Pin Buckle engraved with the BLANCPAIN logo.

EDITION
Limited Edition - Only of 500 pieces


*Each bar corresponds to a 10-metre water column.

* Blancpain reserves the right to modify this model and its technical characteristics.

-------------------------------
Press release - 2018
-------------------------------
-----------------------------------
Blancpain S.A.
Le Rocher 12
1348 Le Brassus
Suisse
International PR: Aude Rosati
Tel.  (+41) 21 796 3636
Fax (+41) 21 796 3637
E-mail: pr@blancpain.com
---------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - Blancpain
--------------------------------------------------------------
www.Blancpain.com