Bell Ross BR03-92 HUD Limited Edition
Look up and open your eyes.
During World War II, British-produced Spitfires used gyroscopic sights mounted in the pilot's line of sight to compensate for target lead and bullet drop. This innovation eventually became what is known today as a heads-up display, a glass panel placed in the pilot's line of sight that displays vital information so the pilot can maintain situational awareness without taking his eyes off the front. Ironically, wearers of the new BR03-92 HUD are likely to be looking down at their watch instead of what is in front of them.
The aesthetic design of the BR03-92 HUD is borrowed from the aircraft HUD. The crystals are green in color and have the same 90 degree markings as in the cockpit HUD. The hour hand is a mark printed on a rotating disc, while the minute and second hands are more traditional. The matte black 42mm ceramic case is shared with the rest of the BR 03-92 collection, but this particular HUD-inspired example is limited.
Powering the watch is the BR-CAL.302 automatic movement. It features a date display and a 40-hour power reserve. A traditional HUD provides information on altitude, airspeed, heading and horizon, while a watch displays the time and date. Fortunately, you don't need a license to operate this device.
Modern heads-up displays have a Tron-like aesthetic that evokes visions of future warfare — and it has become a symbol of next-generation air combat used in video games, movies, and pop culture. That's because it's actually being used over the battlefield as well. Check out the F-18 cockpit here and check out the head-up display mounted above the instruments, which glows green. It's a simulator, but it mimics the real thing. Note that it doesn't look too different from the HUD in Top Gun released in 1986. The F-14 flown by Maverick was retired in 2006. The F-18 is not a "fifth gen fighter", in other words it is the newest, most advanced fighter we have (HUD integrated into the helmet), but it is a fully modern aircraft that is still in service . The amount of information an aircraft can handle has increased dramatically, but the general look and feel of the HUD has not.
Given Bell Ross's flagship product, recreating aircraft instrumentation on the wrist, it's surprising the watch didn't come sooner, given the long-standing role heads-up displays have played in military and civilian aviation. The look we often associate with Bell Ross is the "steam gauge", named for its resemblance to a steam gauge. The gauges are analog and, like Bell Ross watches of yesteryear, are aesthetically pleasing. The BR03-92 HUD is also analog, but it's modeled after a digital display, creating a fascinating interplay that appears to execute in a rather sporty manner. Paying homage to aviation instruments was the go-to watch design, but it was Bell Ross who actually pioneered the aesthetic and produced watch designs that were recognizable even outside the world of watches.
Base
Brand: Bell Ross
Model: BR 03-92 HUD
Reference number: BR0392-HUD-CE/SRB
Diameter: 42 mm
Case Material: Ceramic
Dial color: matte black
Scale: green
Luminous in the dark: Super-LumiNova, glows green
Light water resistance: 100 meters
Strap/Bracelet: Rubber strap, black synthetic fabric.
sports
Movement: BR-CAL.302 (SW300-1 base)
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds, date
Diameter: 25.60
Power reserve: 40 hours
Winding: automatic
Frequency: 28,800vph
Gems: 25
