It would be fair to say titanium is having a moment. First the tech world clamoured for the new iPhone 15 Pro, and now Longines has revealed a version of its Spirit Flyback Chronograph that also trades in shiny stainless steel for tougher, lighter titanium.
Revealed in early October, the watch has a case made from grade five titanium. That’s the same material as the iPhone 15 Pro and Apple Watch Ultra 2. It’s stronger than grade two titanium, which is also used in watchmaking, thanks to being an alloy also consisting of six percent aluminium and four percent vanadium.
Titanium is lighter than steel, while also boasting increased hardness, greater resistance to scratching and a duller, more muted finish. This isn’t the first titanium watch we’ve seen from Longines; the Swiss firm also makes the related Spirit Pioneer Edition, as well as the regular Spirit and the Avigation Bigeye from the tough metal.
The watch is otherwise the same as its steel sibling. The case of the Spirit Flyback measures 42mm across and is a chunky 17mm thick, with a lug-to-lug measurement of 49mm. There’s a domed sapphire crystal on top and an exhibition caseback behind, revealing the L791.4 automatic mechanical movement within. The watch has a massive 68 hours of power reserve and is water resistant to 100 metres.
Aimed at pilots, the Spirit Flyback has a bi-directional rotating black ceramic bezel for recording periods of time. The flyback function means the chrono complication can be stopped, reset and restarted with a single press of a button (instead of three separate button presses). The result is a more precise way of measuring time splits, as the timer starts again immediately.
The anthracite sunray dial has a pair of sub dials showing seconds on the left and a 30-minute timer on the right.
Longines is offering its latest titanium timepiece on a matching bracelet for £5,000 or with a fabric NATO strap for £650. Both are available now.
