In 1931, 4 years after Longines timed Charles Lindbergh’s 33-hour and 30-minute transatlantic flight from New York to Paris in 1927, a world first, Longines released the Lindbergh Hour Angle Watch. Lindbergh designed the Hour Angle using the Weems system of navigation so the watch could be used to determine the geographical longitude of the wearer. It provided this not as degrees but as the time difference between Greenwich and another point on the globe, typically the point the wearer is. Launched in 1933, the Hour Angle was a collaboration between Lindbergh and Longines to create the perfect navigational watch, and so he submitted a design to Longines that allowed for accurate determination of longitude during long-distance flights. As a result, pilots and navigators could find their geographic location quickly, efficiently, accurately, and conveniently while flying their plane. With its famously large onion-like winding crown providing ease of use for pilots and captains wearing gloves, and a large white enamel dial promoting legibility, the Lindbergh Hour Angle is a thoroughly thought out and wonderfully designed timepiece that speaks to the importance that timepieces once had as tools in the pre-digital era.

Watch is in overall very good condition. The steel case shows surface scratches and nicks along the case sides, while the hinged case back displays more noticeable scratches and dings. Please note that the outer caseback hinge has broken off, and it currently fits on the watch snapped into place. The interior caseback is still hinge mounted and in otherwise excellent condition. The bezel remains very well defined, with strong coin-edge detail and clear markings on the lower section, though there is some loss of blue enamel in places on the bezel scale. The outer section of the dial remains generally very good, with a crack in the enamel near one o’clock, while the inner section shows light surface marks. The blued Breguet hands remain excellent. It is fitted with a beige NATO-style fabric strap.

An iconic pilot's watch that was far ahead of the competition at the time, the Lindbergh Hour Angle demonstrates just how innovative Longines could be and how cutting-edge their timepieces were.