What We Know
The Alpina Startimer Pilot serves as the brand’s no-nonsense take on the aviator’s watch. With a simple, clean, and classic layout, featuring oversized Arabic numerals and a well-placed date aperture at 6 o’clock, it’s a lesson in legibility and enduring military style. The model debuted way back in 2011 and has long been a core element of the Swiss brand’s heritage-inspired, approachable-priced collection. Today, it’s getting a significant update with a new design that, while reducing the case’s size, heightens its visual impact, boosting readability and functionality. Alpina is a name with a long and storied history that dates back to 1863, and the new Startimer leans into classic design cues it first used on military watches in the early 20th century.
Sized at 40 millimeters in diameter (down from 41mm previously) and 10.14mm thick (more than a full millimeter thinner), the new steel case features beveled edges that emphasize the gently curved lugs. The updated dial offers a grained surface treatment bringing depth and texture. Perhaps the most dramatic feature is the new, oversized, lume-filled, applied Arabic numerals and indices. Oversized and tall, the numbers take on a three-dimensional effect, rising from the grained dial surface and filled with puffy lume, dramatically deepening the visual experience.
The oversized lume-filled Alpina logo, scripted in white, sits at 12 o’clock, with a black date window featuring white numbers at 6 o’clock. The brand name and ‘1863 Genève’ are placed above the lume-filled handset, while the ‘Startimer’ model name in red and ‘Automatic’ in white sit below.
The new Startimer comes in four variations: a steel-cased, green-dial, and blue-dial, each with beige numerals that glow green. There’s also a black-dialed version with the same colored numerals and lume, in a steel case coated in black PVD. Finally, a black dial with white lume-filled numerals glows blue-green under UV light. The silver hands on each model glow yellow except on the PVD-coated version, which features beige colored lume.
Inside is the Alpina 525 Caliber, a La Joux-Perret (another Swiss manufacturer, like Alpina, owned by Japan’s Citizen) – based automatic movement that offers about 68 hours of power reserve and beats at 4 Hz. The movement sits behind a closed caseback that features an engraved aviator motif, underscoring the model’s flight-ready inspiration. All feature an oversized, knurled crown for easy time-setting and winding.
The lug width is a strap-swapping-friendly 2omm, compared to the previously used, and more oddball, 21mm sizing. The PVD-coated model comes on a light brown leather NATO strap with matching PVD hardware, while the black dial, steel case version uses a Cordura textile strap with red stitching that highlights the model name on the dial. The green and blue steel dials both come with brown leather straps and beige stitching, with the green dial in dark brown and the blue in light brown.
What We Think
These models mark a welcome upgrade. Simple functionality, better legibility, and a significantly improved case shape that eschews a knurled bezel, for a smooth, minimalist design that offers better proportions and wearability. Priced at $1,895, we think the PVD-coated model is particularly handsome and worth the $100 upgrade compared to the steel models.
The Basics
Brand: Alpina
Model: Startimer Pilot Automatic
Reference Number: AL-525BW4SB3 (PVD coated) AL-525BW4S36 (black dial) AL-525NW4S36 (blue dial) AL-525KW4S36 (Khaki green dial)
Diameter: 40mm
Thickness: 10.14mm
Case Material: stainless steel
Dial Color: Black, blue, green
Indexes: Applied
Lume: Numerals, indexes and hour and minute hands
Water Resistance: 10 bar (100 meters)
Strap/Bracelet: Brown leather NATO, cordura textile, brown leather
The Movement
Caliber: AL 525 (La Joux-Perret SW-200 base)
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Diameter: 25.6mm
Thickness: 4.45mm
Power Reserve: 68 hours
Winding: Automatic
Frequency: 28,800 4Hz
Jewels: 24
Chronometer Certified: No
Pricing & Availability
Price: $1795 (steel), $1895 (PVD coated)
Availability: Now
Limited Edition: No
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