First released in 1953, the original Ref. 765 AVI, dubbed the “Co-Pilot,” was a workhorse timepiece designed to serve pilots in the often unforgiving conditions of a single-seat cockpit. Its size, legibility and ease of use made it a trusted flight instrument. By the 1960s, the AVI’s simplified style and oversized proportions made it a watch to wear well beyond aviation circles, and was to be seen on the wrist of celebrities and sports stars of the time.
The Ref. 765 AVI 1964 Re-Edition, released in a limited production of 164 pieces, faithfully reproduces the Ref. 765 AVI’s design. It includes a true-to-the-time hesalite crystal, as well as the baton indexes and lumed pencil hands used on the original. It also features modern improvements, like the durable amorphous diamond-like-carbon (ADLC) coated bezel that gives it its black finish. To maintain its vintage character, the watch is powered by the Caliber B09, a current Breitling manufacture movement that is, appropriately, manual wind. Its limitation references the watch’s original 1964 release with the caseback engraving “One of 164.”
Breitling has released an extremely limited re-edition of a 1964 execution of the iconic AVI Co-Pilot watch.
First released in 1953, the original Ref. 765 AVI, dubbed the Co-Pilot, was a workhorse timepiece designed to serve pilots in the often unforgiving conditions of a single-seat cockpit. Its size, legibility, and ease of use made it a trusted flight instrument.
By the 1960s, the AVI’s simplified style and oversized proportions made it a watch to wear well beyond aviation circles. One particular 765 AVI from 1964, with a black bezel and reverse-panda dial, was a favorite of celebrities and sports stars, including the French skier Jean-Claude Killy, who famously wore it when he won gold in all three alpine skiing events at the 1968 Winter Games. Today, that watch is the subject of an extremely limited re-edition.
Each of the 164 pieces faithfully reproduces this execution’s design. It includes a hesalite crystal, as well as the baton indexes and lumed pencil hands used on the original.
The Breitling Ref 765 AVI 1964 Re-edition also features modern improvements, like the durable amorphous diamond-like carbon (ADLC) coating that gives the bezel its black finish. The watch houses the Caliber B09, a manual-winding Breitling manufacture movement with a power reserve of 70 hours.
The re-edition’s limitation references the watch’s original 1964 release with the caseback engraving “One of 164”.
