20 Affordable Pilot Watches To Buy in 2024

Invented in the early 1900s, the pilot watch was a handy replacement of the pocket watch for aviators, as they needed a reliable way to tell the time without having to take their hands off the aircraft controls and serch in their pockets for the watch.

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Our picks:

20. Hamilton Khaki Aviation Pilot Pioneer
19. Bulova Special Edition Moon Apollo Lunar Pilot
18. Bulova Pilot A15
17. Steinhart Nav B-Uhr 44 Handaufzug
16. Borealis Icarus Cerakote Pilot Watch
15. Marathon Black Pilot’s Navigator w/ Date
14. Seiko Prospex Eco-Drive
13. Undone Aero Commando
12. Laco Augsburg 42
11. Laco Neapel 39 Pilot’s Watch
10. Orient Pilot’s Sport Watch
9. Seiko 5 Sports SRPG35K1
8. Kienzle Flieger Automatic
7. Avi-8 Hawker Hurricane
6. Parnis Big Pilot Automatic
5. Casio Edifice
4. Stuhrling Original Aviator
3. Fossil Pilot 54
2. Invicta Aviator
1. Mil-Tec Luftwaffe ME 109 Pilot Vintage

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[stephenhendricks]

When the narrator begins by erroneously referring to the Hamilton Khaki Aviation Pioneer as having a "quartz" movement while the word "mechanical" appears on the dial, it's very difficult to have any faith in other comments made in this review.

[seanfaherty]

I recently got a Casio slide rule watch for Christmas.
My wife says it was reasonably priced. Less than $100 Canadian.
It’s very nice if not fancy.
I’ve wanted a slide rule watch for some time and to be able to pick one up for 10% of the stuff you are showing seems like a miracle.
Anyway thanks

[PauloOliveira-omtj]

Great list!
But I think Zeppelin and Junkers should also be in this list considering their aviation heritage.
Enjoyed the video.
Thank you!

[gtaliano]

I have the number 10, Orient Pilot's sport Watch, a great bugdet option.

[johnbinford]

Some of the brands mentioned here have an actual history with producing aviation watches, e.g. Laco, Bulova. But some of the brands here have no history and are regarded as "fashion" brands or "novelty/homage" brands, e.g. Fossil, Avi-8. I'm not saying the latter category are necessarily bad watches, buy it's good to know these things to be an informed consumer because as a buyer we often care about such things.

[johanbertilsson]

You could have explained the difference between a Flieger A and a Flieger B since that you had several of them both A and B, and that in Germany they where navigator watches. Also you for got the GMT watches they where also designed for pilots

[Rog]

The Seiko 5 Sports RPG35K1 is not a manual wind. All seiko 5s are automatic, it even says that on the dial.
The AVI-8 is pronounced Aviate, as in aviation. A lot of the pronunciations are awful, but that's what you get if you use a Bot voice.
BTW Fossil and Invictor? You must be joking!

[emisor]

Prospex eco-drive? That’s a huge mistake. Prospex=Seiko/ Eco-drive=Citizen.

[robertfry]

That Hamilton is NOT a quartz watch, it clearly says mechanical on the dial. Get your facts correct.

[pma]

so your beginning video is showing several IWC pieces and then you show nothing but - and I'm trying to not be too harsh here - mediocrity, and quartz at that. The Hamilton and Seiko automatics were the best pieces. Invicta? Overall.... shame on you.

[soundknight]

IWC doesn't have a legacy, they are a fad.