Le Petit Prince is one of few literary works that capture the poetry of time and space. Born from the mind of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the beloved tale charts the Little Prince’s journey across distant planets. Beyond the literal and obvious, the novella’s metaphorical takes on love, loss, relationships and more offer moments of quiet meditation. This delicate interplay between flight and introspection has long resonated with IWC Schaffhausen, even before its partnership with the heirs of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry began in 2006. This year at Watches & Wonders 2026, the unifying theme of time and space deepens the dialogue between Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s narrative and IWC’s purpose-built take on watchmaking.
Celebrating the second decade of its enduring partnership with Saint-Exupéry’s legacy, IWC builds upon this foundation by introducing five references under the Le Petit Prince Anniversary Edition Pilot’s Watches umbrella. Acting as a foil to the tribute collection grounded in fable and heritage, the manufacture shifts perspective and gazes into the horizons of possibility with the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive — a radical tool watch conceived and engineered together with Vast for the unfolding realities of human spaceflight.
Honouring the Little Prince
Clad in 18k 5N gold, the Pilot’s Watch Mark XX Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW328301) is the crowning glory of the quintet. Its warm golden hue lends a striking contrast to the collection’s defining signatures — a deep blue sunray dial. Solid gold appliqués and gold-plated hands are further touches that elevate the watch’s refinement and legibility. Flipping the watch over reveals a blue-tinted sapphire caseback with a contrasting 5N gold illustration of the Little Prince, further anchoring the special edition’s narrative.
By contrast, its stainless steel counterpart (Ref. IW328221) offers a more restrained take without compromising on the collection’s essence. Crisp white numerals are paired with gold-plated hands for optimal clarity, while a closed caseback with Little Prince’s illustration continues the thematic execution. Both references measure 40mm across in diameter, are powered by the 120-hour power reserve IWC-manufactured 32112 calibre, and feature IWC’s EasX-CHANGE® system for quick and easy strap changes. A more elegant take on the Pilot’s Watch materialises through the Pilot’s Watch Automatic 36 Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW458802). With smaller diameter watches being all the rage at the moment, its daintier proportions hover in the realm of subtlety and understatement. Similar to its stainless steel big brother, it features gold-plated hands and white numerals, with a cleaner, deep-blue sunray dial due to the absence of the date aperture.
It should come as no surprise that the remaining two watches that complete the Le Petit Prince Anniversary Edition quintet are chronographs, given the complication’s importance to IWC. While the complication is engineered for performance, its poetic ability to “freeze” time offers intimate moments of reflection. The stainless steel Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW378011) and Pilot’s Watch Chronograph 41 Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW388120) duo feature the same deep blue sunray dial as the previous trio with gold-plated hands and white numerals.
Dimension-wise, the former measures 43mm while the latter measures 41mm across. Peeking through the blue-tinted sapphire caseback with a silver Little Prince’s illustration is the IWC-manufactured 69385 calibre. The movement’s classic column-wheel design offers precision and accuracy while maintaining up to 46 hours of autonomy.
Venturing into the Future
Across IWC’s 158 years of existence, one narrative remains consistent: the manufacture has charted a compelling trajectory in aviation timekeeping that stretches back 90 years. This year, IWC casts its sights beyond the skies into the cosmos with its next-generation Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive. The next-generation watch, specifically designed in partnership with Vast, responds to the unique demands of human spaceflight and timekeeping in space. Building on invaluable first-hand experience supporting the Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn human spaceflight missions, IWC’s experimental XPL division chose to design a space-ready timepiece from scratch rather than adapting a terrestrial model.
“When our engineering division XPL developed the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive, it did not simply adapt an existing watch design for use in space. It took a blank sheet of paper and worked to define from scratch what a tool watch for astronauts would have to offer in terms of functionality, ease of operation, time display and material execution,” explains Chris Grainger-Herr, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen. “Every detail of this watch has been single-mindedly optimised for the unique requirements of human spaceflight and timekeeping in space. It was crucial for us to put the final watch into the experienced hands of real space professionals. After undergoing rigorous testing by our partner, Vast, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is the first IWC watch that has received certification for spaceflight.”
At first glance, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive signals a forward-looking intent that is underscored by a groundbreaking space-certified tool watch designed specifically for human spaceflight. Smooth curvatures and rounded edges border on an almost alien-like, extra-terrestrial look before the starkness of its predominant white palette further compounds the sensation. Finally, the realisation of the crown’s omission sinks in. Inspired by astronaut space suits, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive emphasises ease of operation when wearing gloves in microgravity environments. A patent-pending rotating bezel system and a side rocker switch manage the winding and time-setting functions. The “Vertical Drive” clutch system, which forms the watch’s namesake, transmits the bezel’s movement to a winding stem. Rotating the bezel anti-clockwise winds the mainspring, while clockwise motion sets the time in a 24-hour display. Since astronauts experience as many as 16 sunrises and sunsets in a 24-hour period, they use GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) or UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) to maintain the 24-hour rhythm of Earth time. An integrated GMT module in the IWC-manufactured 32722 calibre allows astronauts to track a secondary time if required.
“The new space age is shaped by innovative and ambitious companies that push the boundaries of science and technology. These emerging players operate much like brands, deliberately harnessing the power of design to inspire people and spark enthusiasm for their bold visions. To reflect this, we have chosen a forward-looking, dynamic and beautifully minimalist design expression for the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive. With its rounded edges and black-and-white colour scheme, it embodies our vision of a modern space watch and carries IWC’s tool watch legacy into the 21st century,” adds Christian Knoop, creative director at IWC Schaffhausen.
Astronauts are exposed to the rigours of space on a daily basis, ranging from up to 4g of G-force during a rocket’s takeoff to the harsh conditions of space, including vacuum, radiation and extreme temperature fluctuations exceeding 100°C in direct sunlight and to -150°C in the shade. As such, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive is crafted from advanced performance materials. Its case is made from zirconium oxide ceramic, second only to diamond on the Vickers hardness scale, while its rotating bezel and case back are crafted from IWC’s proprietary Ceratanium®. As the name suggests, Ceratanium combines the best of ceramic (scratch resistance) and titanium (lightness and structural integrity). To ensure reliability and robustness for mission confidence, the Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive has been extensively and rigorously tested by Vast before attaining spaceflight qualification and certification for the Haven-1 mission. Haven-1 is set to be the world’s first commercial space station and will pave the way for the multi-module, continuously crewed Haven-2 station that is the proposed successor to the International Space Station (ISS).
“IWC Schaffhausen’s dedication to engineering excellence, delivering uncompromising accuracy, reliability and astronaut-focused design, aligns perfectly with Vast’s human-centric approach to developing Haven-1. We’re thrilled to see this tool watch go from design and testing to launch,” added Max Haot, CEO of Vast.
Together, the Le Petit Prince Anniversary Edition Pilot’s Watches and Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive collections chart a compelling trajectory: one that reflects on the philosophical journey of time, and another that pushes its measurement into the vast, uncharted expanse of space.
Stay tuned this week for our Watches & Wonders 2026 coverage. Once you are done with this story, click here to catch up with our latest issue.