Panerai Submersible Marina Militare PAM01697 military watch
Starting from 12.100 €The Panerai Submersible Marina Militare PAM01697 takes the Florentine house's dive line into the world of Italian naval aviation. The first Panerai reference dedicated to the Aviazione Navale, the air arm of the Marina Militare, it reworks the Submersible vocabulary in a green tonality borrowed from flight equipment and helmets. A 44 mm brushed steel case, a unidirectional rotating bezel with a ceramic insert and 300 metres of water resistance make it a genuine diver. Driven by the automatic P.900 calibre and its three-day power reserve, delivered on a green fabric strap with a second black rubber strap, it speaks to collectors of military watches with strong symbolic weight and of tool watches that can actually be used underwater. It is also available in a Carbotech version starting from €19,000.
Panerai Submersible Marina Militare PAM01697 military watch
The bond between Panerai and the Marina Militare dates back to 1910 and took shape in 1935 with a first prototype of a luminescent watch intended for the Italian Navy's combat divers. Those instruments remained confidential for a long time, reserved for military use, and were only made public after the house was bought by Richemont in 1997. The Submersible line, which appeared in 1998 within the Luminor collection before becoming a family in its own right in 2019, is a direct extension of that original mission: to build dive watches designed for action rather than for the display case.
Unveiled in August 2025, the PAM01697 opens a new chapter in that story by becoming, along with its Carbotech twin the PAM01698, the first Panerai devoted to the Aviazione Navale. The screw-down caseback carries for the first time the winged emblem of this air arm, engraved and precisely aligned. The matte grained green dial, shading towards black, picks up the tones of flight equipment and helmets, while the small seconds counter at 9 o'clock imitates a radar screen and conceals a raised anchor, the insignia of the Marina Militare whose signature appears at 6 o'clock.
Unlike the Submersible Chrono Marina Militare Experience Edition PAM01699, made in 35 pieces, this steel version is not a limited series: it joins the regular catalogue as a fully fledged military diver.
Technical specifications of the Panerai Submersible Marina
- MilitareBrand: Panerai (Officine Panerai)
- Model: Submersible Marina Militare
- Reference: PAM01697
- Indicative price: 12 100 €
- Movement: Mechanical self-winding, 3-day power reserve
- Calibre: P.900
- Diameter: 44 mm
- Thickness: 13,3 mm
- Water resistance: 300 m / 30 bar
- Materials: Brushed steel case and screw-down caseback; unidirectional rotating steel bezel with matte green ceramic insert
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Dial: Matte grained green, graduated black finish, grey Super-LumiNova® Grade X2 hour markers and dots
- Strap: Green fabric 24/22 mm, 22 mm brushed steel trapezoidal buckle
- Warranty: 2 years (24 months), extendable up to 8 years through Pam.Guard
- Box contents: Watch on green fabric strap, additional black rubber strap, Panerai case with strap-changing tool
The Panerai Submersible Marina Militare dive watch
This reference belongs squarely to the Submersible family, the one Panerai aims at the marine world and at divers. The 44 mm brushed steel case, the house's characteristic crown-protecting bridge and the unidirectional rotating bezel give it an immediately recognisable silhouette. Stated water resistance reaches 300 metres, or 30 bar, with pieces tested 25 % beyond the depth displayed: the technical promise is not decorative, it corresponds to real use underwater.
Legibility is the model's other pillar. The hour markers have been enlarged by around 20 %, which increases the luminescent surface by nearly 45 %. The Super-LumiNova Grade X2 chosen takes on a deliberately restrained grey tone, closer to a tactical register than to the usual bright white, in keeping with the matte grained green dial shading towards black. The green ceramic bezel insert, matte as well, limits reflections underwater as much as at the surface.
The display remains rational: hours, minutes, small seconds at 9 o'clock and date at 3 o'clock. Nothing superfluous, everything a diver expects. The sapphire crystal protects the whole, while the brushed steel screw-down caseback closes the case and carries the winged emblem of the Aviazione Navale. At 136 grams, the watch makes itself felt on the wrist, which is in line with the logic of large-format Panerai models.
Calibre P.900, everyday comfort and versatility
The chosen movement is the automatic P.900 calibre, a 12½-ligne base 4,2 mm thick, made up of 171 parts and regulated at 28 800 vibrations per hour, or 4 Hz. Its 23 jewels, its Incabloc shock protection and its single barrel offering three days of power reserve make it a robust engine, designed for endurance rather than for show. The three-day reserve means the watch can be set aside for the weekend without needing to be reset, real convenience for anyone rotating several pieces. Automatic winding also avoids handling the screw-down crown every morning.
The 44 mm format calls for a wrist able to carry it, but the thickness of about 13,3 mm stays contained given the size and the water resistance achieved. The green 24/22 mm fabric strap, closed by a brushed steel trapezoidal buckle, visually lightens the whole and reinforces the model's military kinship. The second black rubber strap supplied in the case, along with the changing tool, transforms the watch in a single operation: fabric for daily use, rubber for the water. That versatility, added to the brushed steel construction and the ceramic bezel that is not prone to marks, describes a diver you can wear without excessive care. The engraved screw-down caseback, on the other hand, denies the enthusiast any view of the calibre, a choice consistent with the Submersible's instrument vocation.
Panerai Submersible Marina Militare PAM01697 military watch: the legacy of the combat divers
The Submersible Marina Militare PAM01697 combines a 44 mm brushed steel case, a unidirectional rotating bezel with a matte green ceramic insert and 300 metres of water resistance. Its matte grained green dial shading towards black carries grey Super-LumiNova Grade X2 hour markers and dots, with a date at 3 o'clock and radar-screen small seconds at 9 o'clock. The automatic P.900 calibre offers three days of power reserve behind a screw-down caseback engraved with the emblem of the Aviazione Navale. The watch is delivered on a green fabric strap, with an additional black rubber strap, in a Panerai case fitted with a strap-changing tool.
Movement
The P.900 calibre is a mechanical self-winding movement of 12½ lignes and 4,2 mm in thickness, built from 171 components and 23 jewels. It oscillates at 28 800 vibrations per hour, features Incabloc shock protection and delivers three days of power reserve from a single barrel. It displays hours, minutes, small seconds and date.
Diameter and materials
The case measures 44 mm in diameter and about 13,3 mm thick, in brushed steel, with a screw-down caseback in the same metal engraved with the emblem of the Aviazione Navale. The unidirectional rotating steel bezel carries a matte green ceramic insert, and the dial is protected by a sapphire crystal. Stated weight reaches 136 grams.
Water resistance
Water resistance is stated at 300 metres, or 30 bar, a figure that allows recreational diving as well as intensive water sports. Each piece is tested 25 % beyond the depth displayed. The screw-down caseback and the house's characteristic crown-protecting bridge secure the two most exposed points of the case.
Accessories
The watch is delivered fitted on a green 24/22 mm fabric strap closed by a 22 mm brushed steel trapezoidal buckle. An additional black rubber strap comes with the piece, along with the tool needed to change it. Everything is presented in the new Panerai case, fitted with a drawer housing the second strap.
Warranty
Panerai applies a two-year international warranty, that is 24 months from the date of purchase. The Pam.Guard programme allows this cover to be extended, for a total duration of up to eight years, on watches bought over the past two years. Registration is done with the brand, which also offers a digital passport.
Panerai Submersible Marina Militare The pros
and cons
- 300 metres of water resistance with pieces tested beyond the stated depth
- Legibility improved by enlarged hour markers and a greater luminescent surface
- Automatic P.900 calibre offering three days of power reserve
- Second rubber strap and changing tool supplied as standard
- Direct lineage with the Marina Militare and the Aviazione Navale, caseback engraved with the winged emblem
- High price of 12 100 € for a series calibre behind a closed caseback
- 44 mm case hard to wear on a slim wrist
- Weight of 136 grams that makes itself felt day to day
- Solid screw-down caseback, no view of the movement
- Strongly characterised green dial and grey lume, far from neutral
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Prices and technical specifications are subject to change. Content and photos are not contractual.
