Rolex Air-King – the ugly duckling that became a swan?

Text: Filip Ericsson

The eternally odd bird in Rolex 's model programme, the Air-King, was born as early as 1945 and came in a completely new version in 2022. Eqotime presents it and goes through the history. But above all we try to find the Air-King's soul and explain why the watch collectors have had such a hard time admiring it!

History 

The Air-King's history begins with Rolex's deliveries of pilot's watches to the British air force during the Second World War. It remained a civilian model 1945 whereupon it also got its name (ref. 4925).  

Apart from the obvious connection to aviation, the Air-King is said to have got the second part of its name from the 34mm wide case, which in the 1940s was considered voluminous. Hence "King". Oh how times change!  

The Air-King was modified regularly through history. An automatic movement was added in 1953 (ref. 6552) and with it the new designation "Oyster Perpetual Air-King". The model now also received the stylistic "Air-King" printed on the dial, something that has followed it all the way to today. 

1957 saw the arrival of the Air King ref. 5500, a milestone that came to be manufactured for over 30 years with only small changes. The dial now received the stringent design language that most people associate with the Air-King, as well as the famous Oyster bracelet (instead of the earlier leather strap), updates that would really popularise the model.

A larger renewal did not happen until 1989 (ref. 14000) when the Air-King got a sapphire crystal and a new, modern movement (Caliber 3000), while yet another new movement was introduced in 2000 (Caliber 3130) in line with the updates for the rest of the Rolex programme. Production of this generation of the Air-King went on for a full 27 years. 

2007 finally saw the arrival of a further modified variant (ref. 114200) where the most important update meant chronometer certification of the 3130 movement, for the first time on the Air-King. Production of the 114200 went on until 2014 when the model was discontinued. 

The Air-King early on got the role of entry watch in the Rolex range and consisted in principle of an Oyster Perpetual that lacked a chronometer certificate. The 34mm case stayed along into modern times and the Air-King has thereby worked as a unisex watch for both women and men with a weakness for, one may presume, hard-wearing, no-nonsense wristwatches for lifelong timekeeping.  

However, for the reason described above it has hardly worked as any pilot's watch in a real sense, but rather a simple (but well made) everyday watch for unpretentious buyers with decent finances.

But in 2016, after having in principle looked the same for half a century, the Air-King got a completely new life (ref. 116900). With the 40mm case from the equally classic (and odd) Rolex model Milgauss, the Air-King had been transformed into a sportier and more modern creature. But also into a highly polarising one.   

The dial had namely been given a wilful, and according to many not particularly attractive form that could be perceived as a bit messy, far from the stripped-back beauty of the earlier models. I have never taken to it myself, barely even given it a thought, and when the replacement was presented at the big watch fair Watches and Wonders in Geneva this spring, my cold attitude towards the Air-King's odd figure hardly changed.  

The new Air-King  

Rolex had two choices of path when they began filing away at a new Air-King, either to shape a retro watch with a "back to basics" mindset, or to update the current concept from 2016. They obviously chose the second alternative and improved it on a number of central points, such as a nicer, sleeker case and the installation of the company's latest movement. What surprised, however, was that they let the hardly flattering, somewhat messy dial remain.  

For the oversigned it was a little hard to digest, but after maybe 24 hours or so, something happened. I began to soften, both by being influenced by the watch journalists' articles and by slowly starting to digest the slightly tricky, distinctive dial that has been updated but which looks roughly the same anyway.  

What Rolex has done is to develop the Air-King into a genuine pilot's watch. The case is still at an ideal 40mm but now with a form borrowed from the legendary GMT Master, but without the 24-hour bezel. That means the Air-King holds the characteristic crown guards, for the first time on a Rolex without a rotating bezel. Sensation! Rolex now also places the Air-King in its sports range, or "professional watches" as they officially put it. 

But above all it gives a more elegant impression with its considerably thinner case, important enough. The new model measures only 11.59mm in height, down from a meatier 13.1mm.  

The new Air-King can thus be seen as a little brother to the aforementioned GMT Master II, a pilot's watch "the Rolex way". And perhaps the model has thereby come out of its odd, ugly duckling costume and perhaps remained a swan? At least if it had not been for that dial.  

The Air King in any case holds all the qualities that a real pilot's watch requires. Firstly, as the Rolex Oyster it is, it is hard-wearing as well as water resistant (100m) in case the plane should crash in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The dial is clear, the luminous effect satisfying and the movement well protected from magnetic fields.  

Great then, and as mentioned I have softened towards it myself, but I am still not completely sold. I am, on the other hand, on Rolex's choice of path and on what the Air-King now stands for and can deliver.   

The movement

Inside the new Air-King ticks Rolex's latest base movement Caliber 3230, which so reliably and precisely drives (almost) all current Rolex watches in one form or another. It contains several patents and has undeniably taken the mechanical movement to new heights.  

Thanks to a patented escape wheel design (escapement) and a newly constructed, antimagnetic hairspring they have optimised precision as well as magnetic field protection and power reserve, which is now at a good 70 hours. The construction also gives further improved protection against shocks and temperature variations, something that has always distinguished the Rolex watches.  

Of course the 3230 is certified according to Rolex's "Superlative chronometer" concrpt, which means a promised variation of a maximum of +/-2 seconds per day. Remember that the official limit for an "ordinary" chronometer lies at -4/+6 seconds. 

Epilogue  

With a Swedish list price of 79 600 kronor the Air-King forms the very entry to Rolex's sports range. That is of course not cheap. Rolex has never been cheap and has become even more expensive in recent years. But the Milgauss, Submariner and GMT Master command around 100 000 kronor after all.   

Even if the truth is that today it is hardly possible to buy any of these classics in a shop, at least not for an ordinary mortal, since demand as we know far exceeds supply. Nor is the Air-King likely to be easy to get hold of at the authorised Rolex dealers. You simply have to turn to the so-called grey dealers online where new Air-Kings are right now offered for a bit over 100 000 kronor. 

Despite the above ovations for the new Air-King it must be admitted that a more classic, that is to say handsome, dial would have been preferred. It would then have been easier to like the Air-King, to understand and accept Rolex's choice of path – a modern pilot's watch and the entry to the brand's sports palette. So the question is why they force us to try to love it when it would have been so easy to let it seduce us.