The Breitling Colt gets new armour.

Breitling Racing Team pilot Mika Brageot wearing the Colt Skyracer, in the MXS-R 'Skyracer' plane

Though often overlooked in place of more famous models such as the Navitimer and Chronomat, the Colt is by no means a pushover. Just as the Navitimer was flagged as a bona fide pilot’s watch, and the Chronomat a professional instrument for scientists and engineers, the Colt, introduced in the 1980s, wears its tool-watch tag proudly, having been created specifically as a timekeeper for the armed forces.

This year's iteration, the new Colt Skyracer, further attests to its military lineage, brandishing a mix of robustness, performance and machismo that makes it quite possibly the coolest Colt offering yet.

The first thing you notice about the Colt Skyracer is its jet-black 45mm case with textured surface that resembles screed cement. It is a great, sporty look, of course, but this here, is beauty with substance.

The appearance is the result of a proprietary material called Breitlight, first seen on last year’s Avenger Hurricane. Breitlight is a lightweight polymer material made with composite fibres. It touted to be six times lighter than steel, three times lighter than titanium, and hardier than both metals. It is also scratch- and corrosion-resistant, anti-magnetic and hypoallergenic – a perfect case material, in other words, for a watch designed for use in extreme environments.

The Colt Skyracer's cutting-edge case material, however, belies its unfussy practicality. A ‘simple’ timekeeper, the watch prides itself on high legibility, thanks to the high-contrast interface on the dial with white luminescent indicators. The signature rotating unidirectional bezel with rider tabs is particularly useful for setting countdown times, while a new rubber strap comes in handy with etchings of various measurement scales.

Driving the watch is the quartz-powered Calibre 74, a COSC-certified movement. Before you knock the battery-powered engine, know that the movement is part of  Breitling’s illustrious technological lineage. It belongs to a family of ‘SuperQuartz’ movements that is thermos-compensated and 10 times more accurate than standard quartz movements, which the brand has been developing since 2001. Breitling's press communique bills the Colt Skyracer as a "new generation Breitling". Given the specs, we suppose the tag ought to apply to a new generation of Breitling fans as well.

Case	45mm, Breitlight
Dial	Volcano black
Movement	Breitling SuperQuartz Calibre 74
Strap	Rubber
Functions	Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Water resistance	100m
Price	S$2,850