The spirit of the Spitfire

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REC Watches X4009

Starting from 2.095 €

The REC Watches X4009 is an aviation watch featuring a genuine fragment of Supermarine Spitfire Mk1a X4009, the aircraft flown by Australian ace Pat Hughes during the Battle of Britain, set into the dial. True to the Danish brand’s approach of recycling materials from legendary machines, it turns a piece of fuselage into a timepiece and helps fund the aircraft’s restoration. Released in a limited series with four dial versions, including the Hunter Green with its sunburst smoked dial, it pairs RAF heritage styling with a Swiss automatic movement. It is aimed at enthusiasts of military aviation, Second World War history and watches with strong storytelling value.

REC Watches X4009 aviation watch

Founded in 2014 by Jonathan Kamstrup and Christian Mygh, REC Watches is an independent Danish brand whose name sums up its philosophy: Recover, Recycle, Reclaim. Its watches are designed in Denmark, made in Switzerland, and incorporate materials salvaged from machines that have become legends. Steve McQueen’s Triumph TR6, Senna’s Lotus, the SR-71 Blackbird and the Ford GT40 P/1001 have all lent a little of their metal to its creations.

With the X4009 series, the brand takes on an absolute icon of military aviation: the Supermarine Spitfire. The example chosen, a Mk1a built in July 1940, was assigned to 234 Squadron RAF and flown exclusively by Australian ace Paterson Clarence “Pat” Hughes, DFC, during the Battle of Britain. Hughes was killed in action above London in September 1940. The wreck was not recovered until 80 years after the crash.

Since 2020, the Australian association Hunter Fighter Collection has been leading its restoration, with new fuselage frames made by Airframe Assemblies. Presented as one of only four surviving Mk1as, the aircraft is gradually being reborn thanks to this project, which every watch sold helps to fund. Fragments too damaged to fly again have found another purpose: the dial of the X4009. Launched in 2023 in three versions, the series has since been expanded with the Hunter Green, which extends this tribute to one of the most symbolic aircraft of the Second World War.

Technical specifications REC Watches X4009 Hunter Green

Brand: REC Watches
Model: X4009 Hunter Green
Reference: 20018
Indicative price: 2,095 €
Movement: Swiss automatic, hand-winding
Calibre: Sellita SW461-1
Diameter: 41 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Water resistance: 100 m / 10 ATM
Materials: 316L stainless steel
Crystal: Sapphire, anti-reflective treatment
Dial: Smoked, green, black, blue or anthracite
Strap: Brown or dark grey calfskin leather
Warranty: 3 years

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The REC Watches X4009 aviation watch

The REC Watches X4009 presents itself as an aviation watch with a strong character, where every detail refers back to the Spitfire and its pilot. The dial revisits the RAF style of the “Dirty Dozen”, with luminescent hour markers, hands and a railway-track minute track, plus a “broad arrow” at 12 o’clock. At 6 o’clock, the small seconds subdial houses an aluminium disc taken from the fuselage of Spitfire X4009. Cut from fragments too damaged to be used in the restoration, each disc is unique, so no two watches look quite alike. The case continues this narrative. The crown guards evoke the aircraft’s elliptical wing, the onion-shaped crown recalls the nose cone, and a serial number plate is fixed to the side.

Montre REC X4009 Hunter 7

Inscriptions also pay tribute to Pat Hughes. With its 41 mm diameter, 41.5 mm bezel and 13 mm thickness, the X4009 keeps proportions that are easy to wear day to day. On the Hunter Green, the 316L stainless steel case receives a gun grey PVD treatment that reinforces its technical, military look. Priced at 2,095 €, the watch is available for pre-order at 1,780 €. More than just a commemorative object, it establishes a physical, tangible link with the Battle of Britain while helping bring back a legendary Spitfire.

Four versions in an aeronautical limited edition

Beneath the transparent mineral glass caseback, the Sellita SW461-1 calibre reveals itself with its custom openworked rotor depicting the Spitfire head-on, its anthracite ruthenium plating and blued screws. This Swiss automatic movement, which can also be hand-wound, beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and offers a power reserve of more than 40 hours, with a stated accuracy of ±7 seconds per day. It displays the hours, minutes, small seconds at 6 o’clock and the date at 3 o’clock. In terms of use, the watch is water resistant to 100 m / 10 ATM, a figure suited to daily wear with no diving ambitions. The counter-clockwise rotating bezel, named “Office GMT”, completes the equipment, while the sapphire crystal with triple anti-reflective treatment preserves the dial’s legibility.

Montre REC X4009 Hunter 41

The calfskin leather strap, fitted on a quick-release system, closes with a steel butterfly deployant clasp with pushers. The series comes in four versions. The Semtra Black pairs a semi-transparent black dial with a raw steel case. The Midnight Blue, also in raw steel, features a sunburst midnight blue dial highlighted with orange touches and dark grey leather. The Anthra Gray and the Hunter Green share the gun grey PVD treatment: the former stands out with its sunburst anthracite dial and aged sand luminescent material, the latter with its sunburst smoked dial. Each is limited, from 749 to 877 pieces.

REC Watches X4009 aviation watch: history as a legacy

The REC Watches X4009 brings together a 41 mm 316L stainless steel case, 13 mm thick, a sapphire crystal with triple anti-reflective treatment and a counter-clockwise rotating “Office GMT” bezel. It is powered by the Swiss automatic Sellita SW461-1 calibre, running at 4 Hz with more than 40 hours of power reserve. Water resistant to 100 m, it features at 6 o’clock an aluminium disc from the fuselage of Spitfire X4009. Offered in four limited versions, including the Hunter Green with gun grey PVD and sunburst smoked dial, it comes on a calfskin leather strap with a quick-release system and a 3-year warranty.

Movement

The X4009 is fitted with the automatic Sellita SW461-1 calibre, a Swiss movement that also accepts hand-winding. It runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour, or 4 Hz, and offers a power reserve of more than 40 hours. The stated accuracy is ±7 seconds per day. Mounted on 31 jewels with an Incabloc shock-absorbing system, it features anthracite ruthenium plating, blued screws and a custom rotor depicting the Spitfire. It displays the hours, minutes, small seconds at 6 o’clock and the date at 3 o’clock.

Diameter and materials

The three-piece 316L stainless steel case measures 41 mm in diameter, with a 41.5 mm bezel, 13 mm thickness and 48.7 mm lug to lug, for a 34 mm opening. The sapphire crystal with triple anti-reflective treatment protects a dial that varies by version: sunburst smoked on the Hunter Green, semi-transparent black on the Semtra Black, sunburst midnight blue on the Midnight Blue, sunburst anthracite on the Anthra Gray. The Hunter Green and Anthra Gray receive a gun grey PVD treatment, while the others remain in raw steel.

Water resistance

The X4009 guarantees water resistance of 100 m / 10 ATM, a figure suited to daily use for an aviation watch, with no diving ambitions. The onion-shaped crown is flanked by crown guards inspired by the Spitfire’s elliptical wing. The transparent mineral glass caseback reveals the movement. The counter-clockwise rotating “Office GMT” bezel completes the equipment, while the luminescent hour markers, hands and track ensure legibility in the dark.

Accessories

The Hunter Green comes on a double brown calfskin leather strap with white stitching. Brown calfskin leather also equips the Semtra Black and the Anthra Gray, while the Midnight Blue receives dark grey calfskin leather. All versions share a quick-release system that makes strap swapping easy, a 20 mm width and a steel butterfly deployant clasp with pushers. This choice of leather naturally complements the vintage spirit of this aviation watch.

Warranty

The REC Watches X4009 comes with a 3-year international warranty. An important point for a watch sold on pre-order: this warranty starts from delivery, not from the purchase date. Buyers who reserve their piece at the preferential price of 1,780 € instead of 2,095 € therefore lose no months of cover during manufacturing. Delivery of the Hunter Green is announced from July 2027, and that of the Anthra Gray from October 2026, a timeline to factor into the purchase decision.