This IWC Schaffhausen Pilot’s watch can travel through space – yes, really!

At Watches and Wonders 2026, IWC Schaffhausen has released a watch which is truly out of this world. The new Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is a GMT watch that’s designed to work in and travel through space – yes, really!

The IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is created in collaboration with VAST, a US aerospace company that’s known for developing space stations. A first of its kind, the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is engineered for space travel and for easy operation for astronauts.

There’s a lot of things to be excited about with the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive. First, the watch has a patent-pending rotating bezel which is what operates and controls all watch functions. This has been done with extravehicular activities in mind, where astronauts exit spacecrafts while wearing pressurised suits and gloves.

Wearing thick, pressurised clothing can make it difficult to tweak the time or setting on your watch, so this new bezel system ensures you can change it even with gloves on. A rocker switch is on the left of the case and allows wearers to switch between functions. The Vertical Drive clutch mechanism also transmits rotations of the external bezel within the movement.

Speaking of functions, another exciting feature of the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is its dual time zones. It allows you to set two time zones – maybe one for home and one for space missions – but of course, you can customise it whether you’re wearing it in space or not.

The IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive also has a 24-hour mission time scale which is insanely cool to put it mildly. Time in space is different from on Earth, so the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive displays mission time on the outer edge of the dial via a 24-hour scale.

Despite its technicality, the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive has a simple dial with a light blue seconds hand and white arrow-like hours and minutes hands. The bezel can adjust the central hour hand in one-hour increments in either direction to set both home and mission times.

Measuring 44.3mm, the IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive has a white ceramic case and a Ceratanium bezel which can withstand extreme conditions and temperatures. It’s powered by the 32722 movement that gives it a 120 hour power reserve, and it’s finished with a white rubber strap.

Available at IWC Schaffhaussen, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is priced at £22,600 and as far as we can tell, it’s not a limited piece so anyone should be able to buy it.