Description

Flying has always been one of the brand's passions and they had long dreamt of making a watch—one that would be as comprehensive and complex as possible—to meet the requirements of aircraft pilots.
The complexity of the tourbillon model, which took at least seven years to develop—four years longer than planned—enabled them to address many issues in terms of the functions. Directly based on the RM 039 Tourbillon, this automatic model has many of the functions and complexities of its big brother.

The RM39-01’s movement is designed as a flight navigation instrument. This highly technical and extremely sophisticated watch is a modern interpretation of a device that is essential for any experienced pilot: the E6-B slide rule.
The rather anodyne name belies this watch’s complexity, for it’s a veritable tour-de-force to cram so much functionality within a mechanical watch, even when we consider its significant 50mm diameter. Although many of these complications are familiar, such as the flyback chronograph, they have been adapted for aviation applications.
Take the chronograph’s minute counter, for example: although it is located at a familiar 9 o’clock position on the dial, the hand has been replaced by a rotating disc such that the pilot can read either elapsed or remaining minutes. The hour counter is based on 24 hours, which correlates with the UTC display. Inadvertent activation of the pushers or crown can be prevented through the oversized locking mechanism, not only clearly visible but also easily operated even when wearing flight gloves.
The automatic winding is assured through a key innovation from Richard Mille, the variable geometry rotor, which can be adjusted to ensure optimum efficiency based on the wearer’s activity level. Perhaps the most important function though is the RM 39-01’s E6B circular slide rule, which facilitates the mechanical calculation of critical flight data such as fuel consumption and radius of action.
Although modern flight computers are certainly capable of all these calculations and more, the E6B is still used by pilots who are familiar with its operation, and it’s required learning in flight school, as an infallible backup to the electronic tools they normally rely on (in a similar way that divers may wear a mechanical watch to supplement a dive computer). All in all, the RM 39-01 is a perfect representation of the Richard Mille ethos of crafting highly evolved technical instruments.