IWC have had a cracking year of limited edition chronograph releases. First, the brand celebrated the cult classic reissue “Tribute To 3705”, before dropping their Mercedes AMG collaboration with a carbon fibre dial. Today, the Schaffhausen based brand has released the IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition Inspiration4, celebrating the first all-civilian mission set to orbit the earth.
The Inspiration4 mission is the brainchild of Jared Isaacman, a 38-year-old entrepreneur who will act as the Commander of the four-person flight. After the recent successes of both Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson (Bezos also had his own custom chronographs from Omega), the reality of civilian space flight is well and truly here, something that the Inspiration4 mission is capitalising on.
The mission is set to launch on September 15th from the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and will embark on a multi-day flight, orbiting 575km above the earth and travelling at a mind-melting speed of 27,360kph. Upon returning to earth, the four IWC watches are set to hit the auction block to fundraise for the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis.
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The quartet of IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition Inspiration4 watches all feature almost blindingly white ceramic cases, which measure 44.5mm in diameter, just like the regular edition. In stark contrast to the jet-black ceramic “Tribute To 3705” from earlier this year, the Inspiration4 watches also arrive on white leather straps with a rubber interior.
While the cases are immediately eye-catching, it’s the dials that are the real star of the show. Executed in the dark blue of the night sky, the dials are specked with stars and feature the Inspiration4 logo in the 6 o’clock subdial. The same logo is engraved into the titanium caseback, along with the respective names of the four crew members.
“From our founder Florentine Ariosto Jones, who journeyed from America to Switzerland to revolutionize watchmaking, to our endless appetite for innovation, IWC is a company of pioneers,” said IWC CEO Christoph Grainger-Herr in a statement. “We are incredibly proud to partner with the Inspiration4 mission, which shares so many of our values, to make history together and raise funds for such a good cause.”
It’s another cool collaboration from IWC, which is showing no signs of slowing down this year.
