Wristwatches issued to Royal Air Force aircrew from the Second World War through to the early 1980s were purpose-built instruments designed to meet the exacting demands of military aviation. Across this period, RAF timepieces evolved from robust mechanical navigation tools into highly specialised chronographs, while consistently maintaining core principles of legibility, reliability, and precision. Many examples are marked with the distinctive Ministry of Defence “Broad Arrow” property stamp.
The cockpit watches issued to the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), Admiralty and later Air Board during the First World War represent the earliest standardised British military aviation timekeepers. Designed for installation in aircraft instrument panels, these robust pocket-watch-based instruments were supplied by a wide range of British contractors using Swiss-made eight-day movements before the adoption of the later 30-hour Mark V standard.