Fans of pilot's watches are likely to find a great timepiece in the Alpina Startimer collection, which offers particularly impressive models with streamlined designs and easy-to-read dials. The collection is home to both quartz-powered watches and models with an automatic movement. The 41-mm three-hand Startimer Pilot Automatic Black ref. AL-525BBG4S26, for example, is fitted with an automatic movement and matt black dial. The dial features Arabic numerals and a date display above the 6 o'clock position. The watch is powered by the caliber AL-525, hidden behind a screw-down steel case back. The timepiece is water-resistant up to 100 m (10 bar, 328 ft) and comes on a black calfskin strap with white decorative stitching. You can call a Startimer Pilot Automatic Black your own for approximately 1,000 USD in mint condition.
The Alpina Startimer Pilot Automatic is also available with a blue dial and steel bracelet. The Alpina ref. AL-525BR4S24 features a rose gold-plated case and brown dial, and will set you back about 1,400 USD.
Alpina also produces 44-mm variants under the name Startimer Automatic. The stainless steel ref. AL-525NN4S6, for example, features a dial design with larger Arabic numerals than its 41-mm counterpart, interrupted by bar indices at positions 3, 6, 9, and 12 o’clock. The red Alpina triangle is located above the 12. As with the smaller Startimer Automatic models, the watch is powered by the Sellita-based caliber AL-525, which sits securely behind a screw-down steel case back. The watch is water-resistant up to 100 m (10 bar, 328 ft) and comes on a black leather strap. Expect to pay about 890 USD for a specimen in mint condition.
The 44-mm Startimer Automatic is also available with a dark gray or rose gold-coated case. The former demands an investment of approximately 820 USD, while the latter model will cost you about 200 USD more.
Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture
The two models in the Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture collection feature a 42-mm cushion-shaped case. Ref. AL-709SR4SH6 is made of stainless steel, while ref. AL-709SR4SH5 is coated in yellow gold. Both watches have a white dial with applied bar indices. These indices are silver and red on the stainless steel variant and gold and red on the yellow-gold model. The color of the hands matches the color of the indices on each timepiece.
One of the Startimer Pilot Heritage’s special features is its movement, the in-house Alpina caliber AL-709, which was developed by the manufacturer itself. The movement pays homage to the "bumper movement" that powered Alpina watches in the 1950s. Rather than rotating 360 degrees as it does in a modern rotor, the oscillating weight in this movement rotates only 330 degrees. The watch is operated via a crown located at 4 o'clock. You can view the movement through the watch’s exhibition case back. Each model is limited to 188 pieces and is therefore rare. When one of these models shows up on Chrono24, it usually demands an investment of between 2,000 and 3,000 USD when new. The official list price is 3,336 USD.
Startimer Chronographs
As of December 2023, there are a total of three chronographs in the current Startimer collection bearing the additional designation of "Pilot Heritage Automatic." The design of these watches is reminiscent of the Alpina chronographs manufactured in the 1970s. The chronographs come with dials in silver or two different shades of blue. All three versions share a 42-mm cushion-shaped stainless steel case with a screw-down case back.
The Pilot Heritage Automatic is powered by the automatic caliber AL-727, which gives the watch its bicompax design with subdials at 3 and 9 o'clock. The subdials are black on the version with the silver dial, and silver on the blue variants. Applied bar indices serve as hour markers, and there is a tachymeter scale at the outer edge of the dial, which you can use to calculate speeds and distances. On the model with a silver dial, the scale is also silver, while models with a blue dial offer buyers a choice between a scale in the same color or in white. Depending on the version, a brown or black strap holds the watch securely on your wrist.
Prices for a mint-condition Startimer Pilot Heritage Automatic with a silver dial (ref. AL-727SS4H6) start at around 1,850 USD. Variants with a blue dial are considerably more expensive, requiring investments of between 2,500 USD for ref. AL-727LNN4H6 and 2,700 USD for ref. AL-727LNS4H6.