This particular watch has a serial of 418xxx, indicating it was produced in 1963. It features a 35mm steel case, acrylic crystal, Rolex signed crown, a sunburst silver tritium dial with applied baton indices and original handset. The case backing is engraved “Original Oyster Case By Rolex Geneva.” Inside you can see a mechanical hand winding movement with it’s original spacer ring.

Oyster Air-Tiger

This particular watch reference is 7957. The Air-Tiger was part of a series of watches honoring the British pilots who tactfully defended English skies during the Battle of Britain, and was made by both Tudor and Rolex.

Multi-national RAF…

Among the nearly 3,000 men of the RAF took part in the Battle of Britain, there were men from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Belgium, France, Poland and Czechoslovakia — and a few from the neutral United States and Ireland.

RAF’s top ace…

The top RAF ace during the Battle of Britain was Czech pilot Josef František, flying with No. 303 (Polish) Fighter Squadron having shot down 17 enemy planes with one more “probable” — all in four weeks. The Polish squadron only entered the battle when it was at its peak on Aug. 31 — but quickly became Fighter Command’s deadliest squadron with 126 kills. František was killed in the last week of the battle.