Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic Pilot Watch
Starting from 4.900 €The Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic is an aviation watch that takes the cockpit instrument logic to its furthest point, replacing hands with three rotating discs, each bearing the silhouette of an aircraft. Part of the French brand's Flight Instruments selection, it introduces the Radar display for the first time in a 41 mm BR-03 case, machined from micro-blasted black ceramic. Its sapphire crystal, tinted green throughout, immerses the dial in the atmosphere of an air traffic control screen, while green luminescent material traces the streaks of a radar signature. Limited to 999 pieces and delivered with two straps, it is aimed at enthusiasts of aviation watchmaking seeking an unconventional way to read the time.
Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic pilot's watch
Bell & Ross built its identity on a simple principle: transposing cockpit instruments onto the wrist. Maximum legibility, black dial, high-contrast markers, a square case housing a circular display, the French brand turned this visual language into a signature all its own. The Flight Instruments collection pushes that logic further still, borrowing its graphic codes from altimeters, compasses and control screens.
The Radar line holds a place apart within this family. It was born in 2010 with the BR-01 Radar, which did away with hands in favour of concentric discs inspired by air traffic control screens. In 2011, the BR-01 Red Radar added a red-tinted crystal. The concept returned in 2014 in a 42 mm BR-03 case, then again in 2021 with the BR03-92 Red Radar Ceramic, which introduced aircraft-shaped indicators and a ceramic case.
The BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic extends this story by bringing together, for the first time, aircraft silhouettes and their luminous signatures, and by adopting the 41 mm BR-03 format. Green replaces red, and the whole piece shifts into the atmosphere of a surveillance screen in operation. Like all the brand's watches, it is assembled and regulated in Switzerland, in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Limited to 999 pieces, it is aimed at an audience as keen on aviation as on watch design.
Technical specifications Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic
- Brand: Bell & Ross
- Model: BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic
- Reference: BR03A-GRDR-CE/SRB
- Indicative price: €4,900
- Movement: Automatic mechanical
- Power reserve: 54 hours
- Calibre: BR-CAL.327
- Diameter: 41 mm
- Thickness: 10.60 mm
- Water resistance: 100 m
- Materials: Micro-blasted black ceramic
- Crystal: Sapphire, tinted green throughout
- Dial: Three black discs with green gradient
- Strap: Rubber and synthetic fabric
- Warranty: 2 years
- Box contents: Watch, 2 straps
The Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic pilot's watch
With this Green Radar Ceramic, Bell & Ross applies its cockpit vocabulary to a display few brands dare offer. The square case keeps the round-in-square principle inherited from dashboard gauges, in a format measuring 41 mm in width for a thickness of 10.60 mm that remains restrained for a piece of this character. The micro-blasted black ceramic gives the whole a matte, deep surface, hard, light on the wrist and little affected by everyday marks.
Above the dial, the sapphire crystal tinted green throughout and treated with anti-reflective coating acts as a filter: it unifies the scene and turns reading the time into watching an air traffic control screen. The sighting-mark marking applied beneath the crystal, along with the fixed references and graduations, provide the bearings needed for this unconventional reading. The time is no longer shown by hands but by three superimposed, independent discs, one for the hours, one for the minutes, one for the seconds, each bearing the silhouette of an aircraft rendered in Super-LumiNova® Dark Green. The automatic BR-CAL.327 calibre drives this assembly and delivers 54 hours of power reserve. Water resistance of 100 metres rounds out a watch designed for daily wear, even if it claims above all the status of a graphic object.
Limited edition of 999 pieces and Radar heritage
The Green Radar Ceramic is not a simple colour variation. Announced as a limited edition of 999 pieces, it marks the first transposition of the Radar display into the 41 mm BR-03 case, the most compact version of the ceramic line. It also revives a principle set aside in 2021: three rotating discs, rather than two discs paired with a sweeping hand. Each disc is tied to an identified aircraft: a Falcon for the hours, completing one rotation every twelve hours, a Rafale for the minutes, and the nEUROn, an experimental stealth combat drone, for the seconds.
Behind each silhouette, a luminous trail mimics the signature left on a surveillance screen: this is the true graphic novelty of this reference, and what gives the dial its nocturnal depth. The caseback reproduces the engraving of these three aircraft. On the wrist, the watch comes on a black rubber strap, accompanied by a second strap in ultra-resistant black synthetic fabric, both closed by a black PVD steel pin buckle. The length is chosen at the time of order, in S, M or L depending on wrist size. This level of customisation, combined with the limited run, places the piece in the realm of the collector's watch rather than that of the all-purpose tool.
Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic pilot's watch: radar reading
The BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic combines a square case in micro-blasted black ceramic measuring 41 mm, 10.60 mm thick, with a display made up of three rotating discs each bearing the silhouette of a luminescent aircraft. The automatic BR-CAL.327 calibre offers 54 hours of power reserve and is limited to hours, minutes and seconds. The sapphire crystal, tinted green throughout and treated with anti-reflective coating, carries the sighting-mark marking on its underside. Water resistance reaches 100 metres. Delivered with a black rubber strap and a synthetic fabric strap, this limited edition of 999 pieces is priced at €4,900.
Movement
The BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic is powered by the BR-CAL.327 calibre, an automatic mechanical movement whose architecture is adapted to the disc display. It delivers a power reserve of 54 hours, enough to leave the watch resting over a weekend without winding it. The indications are limited to hours, minutes and seconds, but each is carried by an independent disc animated by an aircraft silhouette. The base used is a Sellita SW300-1 ébauche, beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour.
Diameter and materials
The square case measures 41 mm in width for a thickness of 10.60 mm, proportions more compact than previous generations of the Radar line. It is made from micro-blasted black ceramic, a hard, matte and light material that absorbs light and sets off the dial. The dial itself consists of three black discs with a green gradient, protected by a sapphire crystal tinted green throughout and treated with anti-reflective coating. The buckle is in black PVD-finished steel.
Water resistance
With water resistance of 100 metres, or 10 ATM, the BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic handles rain, showers and swimming without any issue, though it does not present itself as a dive watch. This level matches the use expected of an aviation watch, designed for the cockpit rather than for immersion. In the dark, the aircraft silhouettes rendered in Super-LumiNova® Dark Green and their luminous trails ensure legibility, while the anti-reflective treatment on the sapphire limits unwanted glare.
Accessories
The watch is delivered on a black rubber strap, accompanied by a second strap in ultra-resistant black synthetic fabric that radically changes its look. Both close with a black PVD steel pin buckle, in keeping with the case. A distinctive feature of the order process, the strap length is chosen at purchase: S for a wrist under 16 cm, M between 16 and 19 cm, L beyond 19 cm. The brand also supplies a presentation box, manual and warranty card with its watches.
Warranty
Bell & Ross covers its watches with an international two-year warranty covering parts and labour, starting from the date of purchase from an authorised retailer. It applies to manufacturing defects and excludes normal wear as well as accidental damage. The straps and buckle are not included in this coverage, a point worth keeping in mind given the two straps supplied. Servicing is handled by the brand, whose watches are assembled and regulated in La Chaux-de-Fonds.
BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic The pros
and cons
- Radar display with three rotating discs
- Compact thickness of 10.60 mm
- Automatic BR-CAL.327 calibre
- 54h power reserve
- Limited edition of 999 pieces
- Not an intuitive way to read the time
- Square case bulky on small wrists
- Ceramic sensitive to sharp impacts
- Strap size must be chosen permanently
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Prices and technical specifications are subject to change. Content and photos are not contractual.
