RM 039
CALIBRE RM039
Manual winding tourbillon movement with hours, minutes, seconds at 6 o'clock, UTC function, oversize date, flyback chronograph, central seconds and minute counters, 12-hour totaliser at 9 o'clock, countdown mode, function selector and power-reserve indicator.
Limited edition of 30 pieces
When we started developing this aviation watch, we knew it would represent an Everest in terms of difficulty and complexity, but the reality proved much harder than we have first anticipated!. This device has nearly 1,000 parts, some of which are invisible to the naked eye.
The brand designed this piece as a real navigation aid for experienced pilots, using the traditional materials and visual codes of the aviation industry. Our engineers were forced to invent new processes for its construction, assembly and regulation. We also had to push back technological limits and solve a major problem: how to achieve optimum interactions among the entire spectrum of functions, each extremely complex in its own right.
With nearly 750 components in the movement and over 200 parts making up the case, the RM 039 Aviation E6-B Flyback Chronograph is one of an extremely elite group comprised of the most complicated watches on the market.
The RM 039 AVIATION E6-B displays much of the same information provided by the famous E6-B flight computer, which was invented in the United States by Naval Lieutenant Philip Dalton during the 1930s.
This round slide rule, incorporated into the bidirectional rotating bezel, can be used to read off and calculate fuel burn, flight times, ground speed, density altitude or wind correction, as well as the fast conversion of units of measurement (Naut/KM/Gallons/Liters/Feet/KG/LBS).
The RM 039 tourbillon calibre is also equipped with a UTC hand, a countdown mode, an oversize date at 12 o’clock and a function selector. The tourbillon movement drives a flyback chronograph featuring an exclusive design. This complication provides pilots with a fast, practical device for measuring a series of successive elapsed times when navigating through different marker points. The flyback chronograph function combined with the E6-B flight computer brings the possibility of real time measurement to its functionality and applications.
This watch respects all the codes and requirements of Haute Horlogerie, notably in the close attention devoted to every detail of the movement and case, both of which are remarkable for their exceptional finishing and complexity.
The design of this tourbillon flyback chronograph required many years of research and development. This unique complication is the first of its kind at Richard Mille and the first of its kind in the world.
This includes some 740 parts, 58 jewels and a power reserve of circa 70 hours displayed at 2 o'clock. It also incorporates the patented crown mechanism presented on the RM 037, which protects the movement from shocks and poor manipulation.