SWELL 131 · 6 DIALS · GROUNDSWELL
A pilot’s watch in six dials, paying tribute to Spanish aviation, civil and military: from the Cuatro Vientos flying school in 1911 to the skies of today
DISCOVER THE COLLECTIONTHE MANIFESTO
“This collection is dedicated to those who flew by night with a map, a compass and a watch”
On 10 June 1933, before dawn, a biplane without a radio took off from Tablada with the entire Atlantic ahead of it. Almost forty hours later, it landed in Cuba. Before radio beacons and satellites, a pilot knew where he was by looking at his watch: from speed, heading, wind and time, he worked out his position on the map
That is why pilots’ watches resemble one another so closely: large numerals, legible at a glance, and a crown that can be turned with gloves on. The Swell 131 is built on that very idea: a watch understood at first sight
The leather jacket kept out the cold in open cockpits; aviator sunglasses cut the glare at altitude; the nylon strap held the watch fast even if a spring bar gave way. They stayed on the street because they worked, and the pilot’s watch followed the very same path
THE DIAL
From 01 to 12, applied in gilt metal; the single-digit numerals carry a leading zero so that all share the same visual weight and read alike. The 09 is absent: its place belongs to the small seconds, which beats six times a second
Enamel over a grained base, with a fumé finish that deepens the colour towards the edge. A faceted baton at every hour, a railway minute track and the butterfly beneath 12 o’clock
THE TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
S131-FC · CUATRO VIENTOS
Navy-blue fumé enamel, applied gold two-digit numerals and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Named after the airfield where Spanish military aviation was born, and the aircraft that crossed the Atlantic by night in 1933
VIEW MODEL →S131-FO · TABLADA
Toasted-ochre fumé enamel, applied gold two-digit numerals and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Named after the Seville aerodrome that was home to Spain’s first airline and the great flights to the Americas
VIEW MODEL →S131-FR · AUTOGIRO
Ivory enamel with the softest fumé, applied gold two-digit numerals and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Named after the Spanish invention that took flight at Getafe in 1923 and paved the way for the helicopter
VIEW MODEL →S131-FT · ESTIMA
Olive-green fumé enamel, applied gold two-digit numerals and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Named after dead reckoning — navegación a la estima — the art that turned the watch into a flight instrument
VIEW MODEL →S131-FU · ALTURA
Black fumé enamel, applied gold two-digit numerals and small seconds at 9 o’clock. Named after the sky that darkens as you climb: high in the stratosphere, even at midday, it is almost black
VIEW MODEL →S131-FW · ASCUA
Red fumé enamel, glowing at the centre, applied gold two-digit numerals and seconds at 9 o’clock with a copper hand. Named after the aerobatic display team founded at Manises in 1956
VIEW MODEL →ON THE WRIST
“The whole Atlantic lay before them, and they carried no radio”
Time is navigated
SPANISH AVIATION · 1911 → 2026
In 1911, Cuatro Vientos, an open stretch of land on the outskirts of Madrid, became Spain’s first school for military pilots. In 1921 the first flight by a Spanish airline took off from Tablada, and in 1923 the autogiro flew at Getafe, the invention that paved the way for the helicopter
In 1928, at Getafe, María Bernaldo de Quirós became the first Spanish woman to earn a pilot’s licence. Today, every summer, the yellow firefighting aircraft of the 43 Grupo skim a reservoir or the sea to take on water and release it over the flames, pass after pass
A swell is what the sea carries long after the weather has turned: the long waves that keep rolling in to the shore when the storm that raised them is already far away. That is how the story of those aviators reaches us: from very far away, and still with force
THE SIX DIALS
Six words from Spanish aviation, one 42 mm case
Red with a fumé finish, glowing at its centre. The name of the aerobatic display team founded at Manises in 1956
“Ember red, glowing from within”
FOUR WAYS TO WEAR IT
Linen, knitwear, leather and navy. One pilot’s watch, four ways to dress it
01 · FU — ALTURA
The pale blazer
Black against a linen blazer, hand in pocket: the simplest of contrasts. Black nylon strap
02 · FT — ESTIMA
The cable-knit jumper
Olive green with an ecru knit jumper and jeans: the weekend watch. Black nylon strap
03 · FW — ASCUA
The leather trousers
Red with black leather trousers and a white shirt, sleeves rolled up: even embers can dress up. Black nylon strap
04 · FC — CUATRO VIENTOS
The gold-buttoned coat
Navy against a gold-buttoned coat and a crisp white shirt cuff: a uniform for any day. Black nylon strap
