1940s Benrus Sky Chief Chronograph
After the 1920s and 1930s, pilots and the airline industry were enamored with watches, such as the Airman, and looked to Benrus for well thought out and designed timepieces for their professional use. The Sky Chief was the evolution of Benrus’ experience and the needs of pilots wrapped into the company’s first chronograph. With pilots relying on their timepieces for all navigation tasks, the Sky Chief with its elongated hash marks and totalizers gave pilots the tool they needed on their wrist. The Sky Chief proved to be so popular for all the major airlines at the time that they started to use the slogan “Official Watch of Famous Airlines” and it doesn’t seem like anyone disagreed.
Brand: Benrus
Model: Sky Chief
Year: Circa 1940
Case:
35mm (Excluding Crown), 43mm Lug-to-Lug, and 17mm Lug Width
Stainless Steel
Movement: 17-Jewel Manual Winding Benrus Cal. BE 11 (Modified Venus 178)
Crystal: Acrylic
Bracelet/ Strap: 17mm Genuine Leather Band
Features: Gilt dial with mirror finish, creamy tritium lumed Arabic numerals, original hand set with matching patina, 12-hour counting chronograph with 30-minute intervals, rectangular pump pushers, steel caseback, manual-winding column-wheel movement Cal. BE 11
Box & Papers: No
Condition: In great, original condition. Runs and keeps accurate time. Chronograph runs and resets as it should. The gilt dial is original, unrestored and retains its mirror finish. The lumed Arabic numerals show a creamy beige patina and have never been re-lumed. The original tritium hands have a matching patina that was profesionally corrected. As service history is unknown, a service is recommended in the near future.
After the 1920s and 1930s, pilots and the airline industry were enamored with watches, such as the Airman, and looked to Benrus for well thought out and designed timepieces for their professional use. The Sky Chief was the evolution of Benrus’ experience and the needs of pilots wrapped into the company’s first chronograph. With pilots relying on their timepieces for all navigation tasks, the Sky Chief with its elongated hash marks and totalizers gave pilots the tool they needed on their wrist. The Sky Chief proved to be so popular for all the major airlines at the time that they started to use the slogan “Official Watch of Famous Airlines” and it doesn’t seem like anyone disagreed.
Brand: Benrus
Model: Sky Chief
Year: Circa 1940
Case:
35mm (Excluding Crown), 43mm Lug-to-Lug, and 17mm Lug Width
Stainless Steel
Movement: 17-Jewel Manual Winding Benrus Cal. BE 11 (Modified Venus 178)
Crystal: Acrylic
Bracelet/ Strap: 17mm Genuine Leather Band
Features: Gilt dial with mirror finish, creamy tritium lumed Arabic numerals, original hand set with matching patina, 12-hour counting chronograph with 30-minute intervals, rectangular pump pushers, steel caseback, manual-winding column-wheel movement Cal. BE 11
Box & Papers: No
Condition: In great, original condition. Runs and keeps accurate time. Chronograph runs and resets as it should. The gilt dial is original, unrestored and retains its mirror finish. The lumed Arabic numerals show a creamy beige patina and have never been re-lumed. The original tritium hands have a matching patina that was profesionally corrected. As service history is unknown, a service is recommended in the near future.
After the 1920s and 1930s, pilots and the airline industry were enamored with watches, such as the Airman, and looked to Benrus for well thought out and designed timepieces for their professional use. The Sky Chief was the evolution of Benrus’ experience and the needs of pilots wrapped into the company’s first chronograph. With pilots relying on their timepieces for all navigation tasks, the Sky Chief with its elongated hash marks and totalizers gave pilots the tool they needed on their wrist. The Sky Chief proved to be so popular for all the major airlines at the time that they started to use the slogan “Official Watch of Famous Airlines” and it doesn’t seem like anyone disagreed.
Brand: Benrus
Model: Sky Chief
Year: Circa 1940
Case:
35mm (Excluding Crown), 43mm Lug-to-Lug, and 17mm Lug Width
Stainless Steel
Movement: 17-Jewel Manual Winding Benrus Cal. BE 11 (Modified Venus 178)
Crystal: Acrylic
Bracelet/ Strap: 17mm Genuine Leather Band
Features: Gilt dial with mirror finish, creamy tritium lumed Arabic numerals, original hand set with matching patina, 12-hour counting chronograph with 30-minute intervals, rectangular pump pushers, steel caseback, manual-winding column-wheel movement Cal. BE 11
Box & Papers: No
Condition: In great, original condition. Runs and keeps accurate time. Chronograph runs and resets as it should. The gilt dial is original, unrestored and retains its mirror finish. The lumed Arabic numerals show a creamy beige patina and have never been re-lumed. The original tritium hands have a matching patina that was profesionally corrected. As service history is unknown, a service is recommended in the near future.
