Designed for Orbit: IWC Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive

After announcing its role as Vast’s brand partner and official timekeeper late last year, IWC Schaffhausen has now followed up on that news with a tangible expression of the collaboration, in the form of the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive, unveiled at Watches and Wonders Geneva 2026. An astronaut’s tool watch, conceived from scratch with human spaceflight as the intended use case, the non-limited-edition timepiece was developed by IWC’s engineering division, XPL.

Rethought based on astronauts’ timekeeping demands and the extremes of the space environment, as well as limitations they might face in wearing and using these watches, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is built around the ‘vertical drive’ clutch system that transmits energy from the rotations of the bezel to the movement, with no conventional crown involved. This rotating bezel mechanism, working in tandem with a rocker switch on the side of the case that acts as a toggle, controls all the watch’s functions, from setting home and mission times to winding the movement. Removing the need for a crown is a thoughtful consideration given that astronauts may find themselves having to manipulate their watches through the thick gloves of their space suits. And providing for both manual winding and automatic winding on Earth and also in space is vital: Without gravity, automatic winding can only work through the acceleration created by the watch wearer’s wrist movements, so automatic winding becomes less effective, hence the necessity of manual winding. The capability of winding the movement by rotating the bezel or by way of the integrated oscillating mass means the watch works in gravity and also in weightless environments. 

Specifically engineered for the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive, which is not adapted from an existing IWC model, the IWC-manufactured calibre 32722 automatic movement operates at 28,800 vibrations per hour and is equipped with 120 hours of power reserve and central hacking seconds. The integrated GMT module supports tracking two time zones, with the mission’s reference time indicated by a dedicated hand on the outer dial, in a 24-hour format to mirror the rhythm of Earth time; the central hour hand can indicate the mission time in the conventional 12-hour format, or it can be adjusted in steps of one hour to display another time zone, such as a location on Earth. A window at 3 o’clock keeps track of the current date.

Measuring 44.3mm in diameter and 16.7mm in thickness, the Pilot Venturer’s Vertical Drive might understandably wear quite large for daily use on Earth, but the generous dimensions are also chosen to be in service of spacesuit-outfitted explorers. IWC’s proprietary Ceratanium forms the watch’s caseback and rotating bezel, while zirconium oxide ceramic in white makes up the case; both materials are known for their durability, scratch resistance, light weight, and thermal stability. An integrated strap made of fluorinated rubber, a good thermal insulator with resistance to ultraviolet radiation, continues the lines of the case. And to cover all scenarios that could occur during a spaceflight mission, the watch is water resistant to 100m, so it will survive the splashdown admirably. 

IWC is no stranger to building watches for space: The brand sent its watches into space as part of SpaceX’s Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn commercial human spaceflight missions, in 2021 and 2024, respectively: the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Inspiration4” and Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Polaris Dawn”, both in limited runs of four that were then auctioned off for charity after the expeditions returned to Earth, and both bearing striking visual similarities with the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Top Gun Edition “Lake Tahoe”, specifically the white-ceramic construction paired with a dark dial. 

Perhaps in continuing that aesthetic lineage, the new Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive carries forward these visual codes, although in a radically reimagined style. Modern and minimalist, the watch is replete with references to 60s retrofuturism, especially the Space Age’s fluid forms, bubble-shaped silhouettes, and high-tech materials. A case of white ceramic is set against a matte black dial; among the few observable colour elements are the Superluminova on the hands, offered in blue and green to echo the colours of Earth as seen from way afar. 

On the technical front, instead of leaning on a terrestrial aviation watch qualified (or modified) to withstand the rigours of space, as its previous space-faring watches have been, IWC built a space-bound watch from the ground up, resulting in the brand’s first watch designed specifically to suit the demands of space flight. According to the brand, testing done by Vast’s engineers based in the aerospace company’s California headquarters assessed the watch for resistance to vibrations and pressure change. 

The watch has cleared spaceflight standards for Vast’s Haven-1, scheduled as the first commercial space station and currently in development by the American aerospace company building space stations for human habitation, and the novelty is set to join Haven-1’s four crew members on their trip to space in early 2027.

This story was first seen as part of the WOW #84 Vision 2026 issue.

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