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The latest timepiece to result from the brand’s celebrated collaborations with the U.S. Navy squadrons, the IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces debuts as the first-ever IWC Pilot’s Watch with a fully luminous white dial. Presented in purposeful and menacing black ceramic, “high contrast” describes not just the dial, but this new reference IW326905 in its entirety.

As told by its official name, this latest IWC Pilot’s Watch measures 41mm wide, wrapped in virtually scratchproof black ceramic that is all-matte so as to reduce reflections to a minimum when worn and viewed far above the clouds, where the sun always shines. The massive hour and minute hands, a true Pilot’s Watch trademark, as well as the central seconds hand are also matte to stand out against the expansive white dial at all times. In a rare change of course for the Pilot’s Watch, the hour and minute hands are filled with not with luminous material but white lacquer, and the hour markers — styled after onboard flight instruments — appear not in their usual glow-in-the-dark paint but in glossy black.

This is possible thanks to the inverse execution of the dial where the background of the indices, i.e., the dial itself, is covered with glow-in-the-dark material, setting the black indices off in stark contrast. The end result is nothing short of spectacular, a treat for fans of Super-LumiNova, watch photography, and outstanding low-light legibility. The Black Aces logo is also outlined in black with a red stripe that is complemented by the dash of red at the tip of the central seconds hand. A fun coincidence is how this watch was engineered for the Strike Fighter Squadrion 41 (VFA-41, also known as the “Black Aces”), and so the logo at 6 o’clock features the number 41, which aligns with the case diameter of this particular IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic. It was all meant to be. Based at Naval Air Station Lemoore in California, the squadron was originally formed in 1950 at NAS Oceana, with VFA-41 attached to Carrier Air Wing 9 using the radio callsign “Fast Eagle.”

The caseback is in lightweight titanium and engraved with a “Black Aces” twin-engine jet against a backdrop of spades. The caseback, together with a soft-iron inner case, protects the IWC 32100 caliber from the elements, including magnetic fields and pressures up to 6 bar (equivalent to 60 meters). The 32100 is an IWC-manufactured movement that combines a modern 4Hz operating frequency with 3 days (72 hours) of power reserve, replenished by a self-winding system. Despite its extended power reserve and modern frequency, the 32100 still enables the IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces (IW326905) watch to be relatively thin at 11.4mm thick, making it a comfortable daily wear. Wearing comfort is further enhanced by a black textile strap with a pin buckle in sandblasted stainless steel.

The front is naturally covered by a sapphire crystal with a convex shape and antireflective coating on both sides. As a true pilot’s watch, IWC secures and tests the front crystal against displacement by drops in air pressure — the almost unimaginable rate with which modern jets gain altitude subject their passengers, and their gear, to a drastic drop in air pressure. While the pressure at great depths can crush a watch, a sudden drop in air pressure can have the air trapped inside the watch shoot the friction-fit front crystal from the bezel. A safety hazard, and an inconvenience that is out of the question for an IWC Pilot’s Watch.

The IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic 41 Black Aces (IW326905) is priced at $6,800, excluding taxes. You can learn more at the brand’s website.