It’s well documented that Bell & Ross’s watches are inspired by the instrument panels found in aircraft cockpits. However, nothing emphasises that fact more than the BR-03 Instrument series (note that Bell & Ross has changed their internal taxonomy so the BR 03 is now the BR-03 and the same is true for all other collections), which features colourful renditions of actual aviation instruments on their dials. There’s the Radiocompass from 2022, the Gyrocompass from 2023 and now the Bell & Ross BR-03 Horizon for 2024.
For now, we’re looking at the core basics of the watch because we’ll be featuring a full hands-on review in the October edition of the magazine. The most eye-catching element is without question the incredibly unique dial. It’s based on an aircraft’s artificial horizon, an instrument that display’s the plane’s relative orientation to the horizon, allowing the pilot to track the plane’s position in the air. As such, the dial is split into two sections, the blue of the sky and the black of the ground. There are also the signature horizontal markings across the centre of the display in orange that represent the plane.
In terms of timekeeping functions, the main horizon disc can rotate 360 degrees and serves as the watch’s hour indicator, with the arrow at the top of the blue section functioning as the hand. That means the horizon is continually shifting through the day, performing what must be the slowest barrel role in history. Indeed, for about half the day the watch indicates that the plane is upside down.
The Bell & Ross BR-03 Horizon’s case measures 41mm in diameter in microblasted black ceramic, giving it a matte, stealthy appearance that’s basically invulnerable to scratches. It has the characteristic square design of the BR-03 with visible screws in the four corners, furthering the industrial style. It’s not a subtle watch by any stretch of the imagination. Although with this dial, it was never going to be.
Protected by the solid caseback is the BR-CAL.327 with a 54-hour power reserve. It’s essentially the same as the BR-CAL.302 from the standard BR-03 collection sans date and with a complete rotating disk rather than a traditional hour hand. Bell & Ross movements have been a hot talking point over the past few years and it’s only really in the last 12-months that their quality has had a notable improvement.
The Bell & Ross BR-03 Horizon is limited to 999 pieces at a price of £3,999. Which is a lot, but on the whole makes sense given the uniqueness of the dial and the high-tech ceramic case. This is definitely my favourite of the BR-03 Instrument models to date and a fun representation of the upgraded collection. Don’t forget to check out our full hand-on review with live images in the magazine this October.
Price and Specs:
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