Longines Lindbergh Hour Angle

In a time before GPS, sailors and aviators had to rely on mathematics, knowledge of celestial bodies, and — perhaps most crucially — a good chronometer.

When Charles Lindbergh returned from his pioneering solo flight across the Atlantic, he sought a way to simplify the complicated equations and the array of tools needed to calculate longitude. Approaching Longines, he proposed an unusual timepiece that would allow a navigator such as himself to make these calculations quite literally on fly. The result was the Longines Hour Angle’ watch. 

Using the bezel (which featured an ‘equation of time’ scale for calculating the difference between a fluctuating ‘Earth’ day and a standardized 24-hour day); an inner, rotating dial disk for synchronizing the seconds hand; and dial markings that allowed the wearer to calculate his position within the Earth’s 360-degree rotation, a pilot could effectively tell his position in mid-flight. Until the advent of LORAN, radio navigation and — much later — GPS, this system was the most effective such navigational aid in use. 

Longines has since issued numerous reissues of the famed Hour Angle, including more wearable versions that shrink down the original’s 47.5mm-wide profile. This particular Hour Angle from the late 1980s or early 1990s is housed in a 38mm stainless steel ‘hunter’-style case with an acrylic crystal, an unsigned ‘onion’ crown, a caseback pusher at 5 o’clock, and a fixed, enameled ‘equation of time’ bezel. It features a gloss white and sunburst silver multi-colored dial with black ‘Roman’ and blue and red ‘Arabic’ indices, an outer ‘railroad’ minute track, an inner seconds hand synchronizing dial, and a Breguet handset.

Flip the watch over, and one is met with a caseback engraved with the Longines ‘winged hour glass’ logo — an inner caseback, revealed via a push of the 5 o’clock pusher, is engraved ‘Longies Hour Angle Watch Designed by Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh.’ A sapphire caseback allows one to view the automatic Longines L.989 movement ticking away within, while a handsome, signed black leather strap with a stainless steel pin buckle means one can wear this watch every day, or as a dressier option when occasion calls for it. 

Interesting, vintage-inspired, and cool as hell, the Longines Hour Angle is the perfect watch for those intrigued by horological history. 

If that’s you, you know what to do!

Founded in 1832 in Saint-Imier, Switzerland, Longines was at the sharp end of the watchmaking spear during the beginnings of modern horology. Constantly innovating, the company devised some of the most important wristwatches of the 20th century. Indeed, by 1919, Longines was the official supplier of timepieces for the International Aeronautical Federation, working to develop highly accurate navigation chronometers for many of the era's great aviation pioneers.
Most famous among Longines' forays into navigation pieces is the Lindbergh Hour Angle watch, a wristwatch designed by famed aviator Charles Lindberg in conjunction with the brand to allow aviators to calculate, with the help of a sextant and a known latitude, their exact geographic location.
From the 1930s to the 1950s, Longines also released a series of stunning time-only watches. Often referred to as “Calatravas” after the iconic model by Patek Philippe, most of these watches had thin stainless steel cases at 32-35mm, standard sizes for the time. Like the Patek Philippe Calatrava, these timepieces were known for their perfect proportions and the elegant simplicity of their designs.

But it wasn’t just time-only watches that drew the attention of clients the world over — particularly in the Americas: The company’s caliber 13ZN, first released in 1936, is widely regarded as one of the finest chronograph movements ever devised by any brand. This development would form the basis of work in sports timing, in which Longines developed timepieces with flyback functionality as well as 1/100th-second counters.

Today, Longines produces a remarkable number of watches annually — over 1.5 million of them — and rakes in over $1B in annual revenue through the sale of everything from simple quartz watches to sophisticated moon phases and chronographs. Incredibly, they produced their 51 millionth timepiece in 2019 and in some ways, it feels like the brand is just getting started.

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Condition

Since our pieces are vintage or pre-owned, please expect wear & patina from usage and age. Please read each item description and examine all product images.

Warranty

We back each Analog:Shift vintage timepiece with a one-year mechanical warranty from the date of purchase.

International Buyers

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All of our watches include complementary insured shipping within the 50 states.

Most of our products are on hand and will ship directly from our headquarters in New York City. In some cases, watches will be shipped directly from one of our authorized partners.

We generally ship our products via FedEx, fully insured, within 5 business days of purchase. An adult signature is required for receipt of all packages for insurance purposes. Expedited shipping is available at an additional cost. We are also happy to hand deliver your purchase in Manhattan or you may pick it up at our showroom.

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We welcome international buyers, please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.