Hamilton 6B H-67 RAF Pilots Military Wristwatch c.1967
The end of the Second World War by no means brought about total peace for Britain who became involved in conflicts all over the world. Such conflicts in Palestine, Malaya and Korea were fought with the equipment left over from WW2, which in watch terms for the British Army was primarily the W.W.W’s.
The watches issued to RAF and Navy pilots during WW2 were far more varied and remained in service until the late 1950s when the fabled IWC and JLC Mark XI’s became the preferred choice for most aircrew.
In the mid-1960s Hamilton began to supply the British military with watches which included the Hamilton 6B H-67 which were issued to RAF aircrew. These watches were produced to the same MOD specification as their more expensive and illustrious counterparts, the JLC and IWC Mark XI.
This specification included a highly accurate movement with a hacking device, an inner soft iron cage forming a shield to protect the movement from magnetic interference, a stainless steel waterproof case with a screwed ring to protect the crystal from sudden decrease of pressure, and a black dial with luminous hands.
As such, the Hamilton 6B is referred to by many collectors as the “Hamilton Mark XI”.
It is believed that only around 1,000 of the Hamilton 6B H-67 were ever produced which makes these watches extremely rare and highly collectible.
