IWC has a long history regarding pilot’s watches. Their iconic Mark 11 dates back to 1948 and that’s why IWC thought it is time to resurrect it in the current Mark XVIII. Meet the ‘Tribute to Mark XI’ version. Limited to only 1948 pieces, so you have to be quick.

The original IWC Mark 11 was in production from 1948 till the early 1980s, before being replaced with the Mark XII. The IWC Mark 11 was fitted with a IWC Caliber 89 movement, hand-wound and ticking at 18.000vph. A movement they used in various other watches as well. After that, IWC used Jaeger-LeCoultre movements and ETA movements for their Mark-series Pilot watches. This new IWC Mark XVIII ‘Tribute to Mark XI’ has the self-winding 35111-calibre, which is based on the Sellita SW300-1.

IWC Mark XVIII Mark 11

IWC made sure to incorporate a couple of design elements from the original Mark 11, such as the baton hands, the luminous markers at 3, 6 9 and 12 o’clock and of course the triangular index at 12. The lumed elements have received this vintage patina look to stress the retro aspect of this Pilot’s watch.

I love IWC’s toolwatches, like the Pilot mark-series and the Genta based Ingenieur models. This Mark XVIII ‘Tribute to Mark XI’ reference IW327007 is simply stunning and one of my favorite editions already. The original Mark 11 was mainly delivered to the RAF.

As said, the Mark 11 was in production for a long time span. In 1984 it was replaced by the Mark XII. Ever since, according to IWC, it is one of the best selling models from the Schaffhausen watch company.

IWC Mark XVIII Mark 11

This special edition will be exclusively offered at Harrod’s in London for 3 months (starting July 2017) and afterwards will be available from IWC boutiques all over the world.

IWC’s Mark XVIII ‘Tribute to Mark XI’ IW327007 is priced at 4790 Euro and comes with a green NATO strap.

More information can be found on IWC on-line.

 

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