One of the many niches in the watch world is the Aviation niche. There are several brands out there with mighty budgets to buy big booths at Baselworld, but if you want to keep it real, you can begin with a company that invented the concept of strapping a cockpit instrument to your wrist: Trintec Watches.

In 1990, Brenden Nunes created a watch that was inspired by an aircraft altimeter. It was called the 9060 Altimeter Watch. It was 33mm and had this Ryder Aviall logo across the dial. Since then, we’ve seen a few similar designs. As Don Evans put it in his review, “just because one company made a watch that looked like a clock from a cockpit does not mean that other companies cannot do it”. He’s right. Not long after Trintec’s design patent expired, other players in the industry jumped on the chance to create their own renditions of cockpit themed wristwatches.

26 years later, we welcome the launch of a new concept from Trintec: the ZULU-07 PRO. Half flyer, half diver. This beast still offers concise legibility inspired by the matte black dials on aviation instruments, but adds a few upgrades to accommodate serious divers. An excellent combo for military watch enthusiasts.

Equipped with an easy to adjust 9.5mm screw-down crown and water resistance of up to 200 meters or 600 feet. The matte black PVD bezel can be gripped by pilot’s gloves or dive-suits with a smooth 120 clicks.

The scratch-resistant sapphire crystal is AR coated. If you’re tough on watches, you’ll appreciate the way the crystal is positioned 2.5mm below the bezel line. Thanks to this extra protection you won’t have to worry about chipping the edge.

The 47mm square case is made out of stainless steel with a sandblasted finish. It sits 17.5mm tall on the wrist, but it should be noted that despite the size on paper, this watch is extremely comfortable and does not wear like a 47mm watch.

If you’re a strap nerd, keep in mind that the big dimensions call for a 24mm strap. On the black silicone strap we weighed it in at 176 grams. The strap is perforated near the bottom and vented at the top. It is soft and flexible with a steel tang buckle that matches the case.

Getting to the guts of this machine, the automatic movement is a Japanese-made Miyota caliber 9015. Trintec lists it as having a power reserve of 42+ hours and accuracy of -10/+30 seconds/day. See the full specs of this movement here.

“The Miyota caliber 9015 is a 24 jewel automatic movement. It is made in Japan and was first introduced in 2009. This movement is found in many new microbrand watches because it is easily obtainable, has a desirable hacking function, and considered a workhorse movement.” –Caliber Corner

If you value a good lumeshot, the ZULU-07 PRO has your back with #fidaynightlumebattle shots. Applied thick and heavy, the bold markers and hands glow bright when the lights are low. There is lume on the seconds hand and 12:00 bezel marker as well.

There are a lot of watch brands swimming around the aviation category, but if you’re looking for a cool watch priced under a grand, this is it. For $699.00 USD, the ZULU-07 PRO should be on everyone’s affordable watch list. It is a very cool, fun, attention-grabbing timepiece for serious watch geeks. We hope they get a lot of support from the community because we’re looking forward to seeing what they can come up with next.

Reverse Unboxing Video:

Additional Resources:

• Lume Wars: Trintec ZULU-07 VS Lum-Tec Combat B24