Omega "Dynamic" manual wind. £15 from an Indian run watch shop in Main Street, Gibraltar July 1970. Still keeping time to plus a minute or so a month. Been back to the Watch Doctors in Hertfordshire about ten years ago to replace a broken glass and they serviced and cleaned it for about - I seem to remember - £120. All a Breitling does is remind you and others that you paid a lot of money for a posh name.

My 10yo B1 has had its minute hand skipping and not advancing, and I just got quoted at $1200AUD for a service and a new electronic module. Also told of moisture inside the watch - has only ever been to Brietling... Didn't get it done, so it's back to the top drawer.

Meanwhile my 25yo $50 lorus I bought at uni with a chip out of the side of the glass when it fell 50m off my wrist to the rocks below whilst rock climbing has a new battery and is as waterproof and reliable as ever. Shower, swim, ocean never leaves my wrist.

Assuming its the same one, a colleague had Brietling remove them for same reason. He got quoted for their reinstallation at last service!

ShyTorque - what model do you have?

My 1986 Aerospace gets a new battery every now and again, cost £15. Hasn't been serviced for years, works fine.

How about something hardcore?
 

I have had a few:-

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casio_F-91W

"It is a "modest masterpiece" says design critic Stephen Bayley."[1]

Just get a new one when the strap breaks, as they do. I think it's an age thing since they seem to break (5 yrs) even if not worn much. Got mobile phone.

But perhaps not if you visit US!!!

"... Guantanamo ... possession of the F-91W – available online for as little as £4 – suggests the wearer has been trained in bomb making by al-Qaeda in Afghanistan."[1]

OH! OH!. I think I have one somewhere.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....9496076f9d.jpg

My older brother flew PPL with a Breitling. A Breitling was the first thing I bought when I started my apprenticeship though when I started flying I preferred a cheap Lorus as I could set local and UTC on it. Both our Breitlings are now worn out, can't justify the cost to repair.

afaa - what Breitling models do you have that are 'worn out'?

If you wont to sell them, just PM, I don't mind if they are worn out.

These are your friends.

https://www.watchdoctors.co.uk/

I have a Breitling Chronomat, stainless and gold band with blue dial/gold bezel - the older model with the 15 & 45 swappable. Had them reversed so I have count up on the chrono then minutes countdown on the bezel. Slide rule is useless airborne though I've found it convenient for currency exchange rates that sort of thing. Was a gift from my departed wife when I passed the Flight Paramedic board exams & earned a place flying CSAR roughly the same time. It is my 2nd most treasured watch, behind a Tag Grand Carrera chronograph on a crocodile strap she gave me when she gave me the pleasure of marrying her.....the strap wears & loosens on the clasp, it slipped off my wrist on morning as I walked toward the door last year and has remained in the safe ever since. Anyway the '45' marker fell off week before last, probably lack of locktite by my local jeweler friend....tis $250 for that small piece of gold. Considering sending it for service they recommend 5 years it's been much more than that. But it keeps time something better than 1 second a month synched to the nuclear clock, several of my friends with Rolexes have 30-35 years of hard use without service and perfect function. Interestingly the core mechanism is identical in the Breitling and Tag both.

A Rolex Submariner in black cerachrome or whatever they call it & brushed stainless was my first Swiss mechanical certainly the simplest. It is off for it's bi-annual service, lifetime warranty BUT only if you send it in every other year by the cut date. There is a newer model now this one's the so-called 'scrambled serial number.' Imagine most of the parts are new each time they just say "ultrasonically clean, measure to tolerances and replace with new components as needed.' Interestingly after the Swiss movement houses stopped selling their base movements insisting the big names pay them for a finished piece not $20 for a $10,000 watch (much more work done of course) a Rolex chap told me they lost a lot of engineers being the only completely in-house maker as all the other Swiss names bought engineers from them along with the watch houses to develop their own movements.

Wear the Rolex or Breitling daily, the former having seen some very hard duty. A Casio Pro Trekker does duty in the mountains. Appreciate the mechanicals but yes it's a personal indulgence and status thing. No quote yet, local Breitling rep not very helpful. In the US but will pass contacts to any needed assuming I ever get them. Stay safe,

DM

DM - what model Sub do you have? Bi-annual servicing sounds a bit severe (I assume you mean 'biennial'?!) I have the latest ceramic Sub as a daily wearer which is on 10 year schedule, though I probably wouldn't leave it quite that long.

I assumed watch repair was a vanishing trade but perhaps not ?

https://www.eternaltools.com/blog/27...ound-the-world

Breitling Aerospace watch problems
 

I have a Breitling Aerospace watch that unfortunately every time I fly, the analogue hands become desynchronised with the digital time. The analogue hands loose time by around 3 minutes over a 6-7 hr flight. The watch has gone back and forth to Breitling. Their customer service is somewhat lacking to say the very least too! They say there’s no fault yet it continues to do it. They also claim that strong magnetic forces might cause the problem that I have. I only wear the watch when I go to work. I fly the B777 and B787. Is anyone else facing the same issues as I'm having?
Regards

Flameout

I have had watches from Rolex, Omega, Seiko and others, every one loses time when worn despite being certified chronometers, fine when on a watchwinder.
Something to do with my personal magnetic fields, my Mother has the same problem. They do gain when I am undergoing a period of depression.

Looks like the stepper motor for the analog hands looses steps. The strong magnetic field theory would make some sense if there was such a source, but I can think of none. If the watch it still waterproof, I doubt it could be the slightly lower cabin pressure, or hygrometry. Flying high measurably increases errors in computer DRAM due to single event upsets from cosmic rays, but I doubt that it could have some effect on the driver of a stepper. Remains temperature (cold air), position, vibration. Stick shaker :-) ?

[I was given a similar electronic+mechanic watch from another Swiss brand. I experienced two different reliability issues. After 6 months the handle for minutes suddenly stopped moving at all. On the replacement (under warranty), a 4mm spot developed on the side of the digital display, with the same contrast as the digits. I'm living with that later defect. Never had troubles related to flying (as a PAX) with any other watch].

All I can suggest is to replace it with a cheap Chinese replica. It will still lose the minutes, but you will feel much better overall... :P

WATCH PROBLEMs
 

I have a TAg Heur divers watch and although l fly all the.time I have never had the.problems as described.
Zelly jewellers in Bishops Stortford are into Breitling specialists they might be able to come up with an ecplanation.
Regards
KARNACK

What andrasz said. I bought a replica Omega Seamaster in Thailand 10 years ago for next to nothing, still keeps perfect time and looks and feels the business.