Three modern takes on iconic watches from Omega, Longines and Glycine

Anyway, given my devil-may-care attitude, cocky strut and musky odours, I’m going to freestyle it this week. There’s no theme and no real rhyme or reason to choosing these three watches beyond the fact they are new to the market and have tickled my fancy. And I’m going to start with a cult watch, the Glycine Airman. The Airman is a fanboy favourite and pretty much the only Glycine worth checking out, primarily due to its indelible association with the explosion in global air travel in the 1950s and 60s. The Airman was one of the finest examples of a second-time-zone watch when it was introduced and the association with travel and aviation stuck. The new Airman Airfighter is a muscular, modern itera­tion, leaning more heavily on the aviation side in terms of design and size (46mm). Of course, the second time zone is still present and shown by the hand with a white triangle. Actually, there are three time zones indicated on this watch, with the third shown by the rotating black bezel. Inside the hardy case is a GL 754 movement and the timepiece comes with a black leather strap. The Airman Airfighter sticker price is a cool HK$38,000, which, given the pedigree and features, isn’t too shabby.

OK, I am going to talk about another Omega Speedmaster. If you’re sick of the Speed­master and my rather shameless love for it, then feel free to skip to the next watch, but I really do have to talk about the 1,000,000th iteration of this classic. The Speedmaster Automatic is a nice nod to the 1968 version, with the minute track on the bezel, but, for me, the standout elements on this watch are the matt-black dial and orange markings. Taken together with the black and orange leather racing strap, this is as stark a racing Speedmaster as you can find. The dial also features two sundials rather than the three most associate with the Speedmaster. The looks are retro but inside the 44.25mm case, Omega has given this watch a Rolls-Royce jet engine of a move­ment – the Master Co-axial 9900 – which has all the fancy cutting-edge tech­nology you need to bore your friends. The Speedmaster Automatic is priced at HK$69,100.

Lastly, some­thing really classy and classic from Longines, the Flagship Heritage 60th Anniversary Edition. If you’re in the market for a dress watch and don’t want to go for some of the more obvious brands, then this Flagship is worth a closer look. Longines puts a lot of people off with its inexplicable love for showjumping and rather cringeworthy adverts, but the Flagship encapsulates the best of the brand, with a nod to its rich history as well as solid construction and, more often than not, competitive pricing. The Flagship is a beautifully rendered retro dress watch; I particularly like the script writing on the dial under the logo. The case is sized at 38.5mm and features are kept simple with only a small seconds hand. Prices haven’t been released yet but Longines will limit the steel version to 1,957 pieces (see what it did there?), and the rose gold and yellow gold to 60 each.