Breitling Avenger watches

The Breitling Avenger is the brand's oversized pilot's tool watch, built, in Breitling's words, for the conditions of a jet cockpit. It first appeared in 2001 as an upsized, sportier relative of the Chronomat. The parts that identify it are a chunky case, a unidirectional rotating bezel with rider tabs, a grenade-grip screw-down crown and high-contrast Super-LumiNova, and every Avenger is water resistant to 300 m.

Breitling reorganised the line in 2019: chronographs at 43 and 45 mm plus the 48 mm Super Avenger Chronograph, the Avenger Automatic 43, the Automatic 45 Seawolf and the Automatic GMT 45. The time-and-date automatics run on Breitling's Calibre 17, an ETA 2824, the GMT on the Calibre 32, an ETA 2893, and the chronographs on a Valjoux 7750. The 45 and 48 mm models also came as Night Mission versions, with a black-coated titanium case and stencil numerals.

In 2023 the cases shrank by at least 1 mm and the 48 mm chronograph was dropped. The range became the B01 Chronograph 44 with Breitling's in-house B01 calibre, the GMT 44 with a 24-hour Zulu-time hand, and the Automatic 42. Night Mission now means a black ceramic case.

Other branches of the family include the Avenger II, the Avenger II GMT, the Super Avenger II, the Avenger Seawolf and Avenger II Seawolf, the Bandit and the Blackbird, and the Hurricane Breitlight models at 45 and 50 mm. Special editions were made for the Swiss Air Force (550 pieces), the Red Arrows (220, on the steel Automatic GMT 45), Blue Impulse (300) and Fursan Al Emarat (250).