In the spring of 1953, three Breguet chronograph wristwatches numbered 1530, 1531 and 1532 were first identified as a Type 20, developed as a precision instrument for pilots' wrists. The fourth and fifth pieces were also Type 20, while the sixth appeared in its ledgers with Roman numerals as Type XX.
Manufacture Breguet recently unveiled the first two models of the fourth-generation Type XX in a magnificent setting at Petit Palais-City of Paris Fine Art Museum.
Both presented in a 42mm steel case, the military-inspired version is named Type 20 Chronographe 2057 and its civilian counterpart Type XX Chronographe 2067.
The confusion regarding the numerals was actually sorted out in 1955, when pieces made for the French Air Force were designated Type 20s while the rest were Type XX, apart from a small series of eight pieces manufactured in 1957.
The new Chronographe 2057 is inspired by the Type 20 No.7211 of which 1,100 pieces were delivered to the French Air Force between 1955 and 1959.
In the early 1950s, Breguet worked on meeting technical specifications for a chronograph wristwatch with a black dial, luminescent numerals and hands, a high-quality movement resistant to changes in pressure and acceleration, a rotating bezel and a flyback function.
Its watchmakers had mastered the "retour en vol", or flyback function, by 1949. A press on the upper and lower pusher simply starts and resets the chronograph, which then immediately starts again for a new timing session.
Following tests carried out by the Service Technique Aéronautique, in 1954 the French Air Force commissioned Breguet to produce 1,100 pieces of the Type 20 No.7211, following contract number 5101/54.
Sized at 38.3mm, the pilot's watch featured an ungraduated rotating bezel, an unsigned dial with the 30-minute totaliser and small seconds at 3 and 9 o'clock, as well as a practical pear-shaped winding crown. The official inscriptions BREGUET - TYPE 20 - 5101/54 appeared on its caseback.
The aesthetics of the new Type 20 Chronographe 2057 remain faithful to the 1950s military timepiece.
The steel case is fitted with a non-engraved fluted bidirectional bezel, and the pear-shaped crown is adjustable in three positions: neutral, date correction and time setting.
A 30-minute totaliser and a smaller 60-second totaliser are positioned 3 and 9 o'clock on the modernised black dial, which also has a date window between 4 and 5 o'clock.
The 2 o'clock pusher serves to activate the chronograph and the other one at 4 o'clock is for the flyback function.
The legibility is enhanced by luminescent Arabic numerals, the triangle on the bezel and hands in a mint-green shade.
The civilian Type XX Chronographe 2067 differs with these three elements coated with an ivory-coloured luminescent treatment. Other differences include the graduated rotating bezel, the classic straight winding crown and three sub dials.
The 15-minute and 12-hour totalisers are positioned at 3 and 6 o'clock and the running seconds at 9 o'clock. Just as in the military-inspired version, the totalisers are sized differently to make the black dial more dynamic and legible.
This second new chronograph is a direct descendant of the civilian Type XX from the 1950s and 60s, notably a model bearing the number 2988, made in 1957.
It took Breguet four years to develop the fourth-generation Type XX, equipped with the new Calibres 7281 and 728 boasting several patents.
Along with a column wheel, vertical clutch, 5Hz frequency and innovative zero-resetting activation system, the self-winding movements benefit from technical innovations in chronometry.
The balance spring, escape wheel and pallet-lever horns are made of silicon, resistant to corrosion and wear. Moreover, silicon is insensitive to the influence of magnetic fields and improves accuracy.
Retour En Vol is engraved on the movement to signify the flyback function, which allows pilots to replace three operations previously required with just one.
To strengthen the movement and guarantee its precision even in case of potential impact, a cross-through bridge secures the balance in place. Sized in such a way as to occupy a maximum of the available space within the movement, the barrel is equipped with a spring whose high-energy-density material enables a longer power reserve of 60 hours.
In addition to the sunburst pattern, snailing, bevelling, circular-graining and other visible decorations on the components, the column wheel features a black DLC treatment that heightens visual contrast while improving tribological properties.
The sapphire crystal caseback reveals the movement and its blackened oscillating weight shaped like an aircraft wing.
Also reminiscent of an aircraft wing, a Havana-coloured leather box houses the fourth-generation Type XX, which can be matched with a calfskin or Nato strap. Switching the strap takes only a few seconds thanks to the tool-free Rapid Interchange System complemented by an interlocking system to secure it in place.
