The fan-favorite Citizen Promaster household of sports activities watches celebrates its thirty fifth anniversary in 2024, and over the previous three-and-a-half a long time, this diversified nameplate has supplied each rock-solid functionality and a few really avant-garde problems. Amid all these distinctive choices, although, it’s troublesome to imagine that there has by no means been an computerized GMT timepiece below the Promaster banner. For its first main Promaster launch of 2024, Citizen goals to vary this, folding its immense success with GMT fashions lately right into a rugged and engaging pilot’s watch. The brand new Citizen Promaster Air Automated GMT is a becoming kickoff to the model’s anniversary celebrations, packing “traveler” GMT performance along with the muscular, function-forward styling followers have come to like from Promaster pilot fashions to create an athletic, reliable journey watch.
There’s no denying that the Citizen Promaster Air Automated GMT is a big watch. With a 44.5mm diameter and a substantial 12.7mm-thick profile, this chrome steel case carries a muscular stance within the age of 37mm circumstances, however on the wrist, it’s impressively well-proportioned. A lot of this comes all the way down to the quick, sloping angular lug design, but it surely’s clear that just about each side of this case is thoughtfully designed to maintain it approachable for smaller wrist sizes. For instance, a lot of the case thickness is devoted to the engraved chrome steel 24-hour bezel, which is gray-coated to interrupt up the watch’s visible silhouette and completed with a knurled edge that emphasizes the watch’s rugged, function-first character. This robust, utilitarian really feel continues via each the square-guarded knurled crowns – the three o’clock screw-down crown for normal performance, and the 8 o’clock crown that operates the inner slide rule bezel. Round again, Citizen suits the Promaster Air Automated GMT with an engraved stable caseback, that includes a relatively simplistic trendy fighter pilot’s helmet motif. Surprisingly, Citizen charges this pilot’s look ahead to a hefty 200 meters of water resistance, making it a super one-watch alternative for adventurous worldwide vacationers.
Citizen’s pilot watch dials have a historical past of being dense and feature-packed, however the Promaster Air Automated GMT counterweights the busy Citizen pilot look with a deftly balanced dial structure and stable proportioning. The outer fringe of the dial is a basic Promaster pilot’s watch, with an inner slide rule bezel paired with a posh multi-function scale surrounding the outer minutes scale. Inside this ring of complexity, nonetheless, the Promaster Air Automated GMT is a cleaner, extra historically good-looking affair. The primary dial floor is deep black with the barest trace of a heat sunburst (the impact is sort of unimaginable to seize on digital camera), topped with a medium-gray crosshair sample for simpler orientation at a look. Likewise, the fingers and indices are easy, basic, and geared towards simple legibility. The broad Roman sword handset is paired with a set of beveled wedge-shaped indices accented by utilized Arabic numerals at 12 o’clock and 6 o’clock. These final parts are intriguingly stylized, with mirror-polished surrounds and vestigial serifs including character to an in any other case daring, readable typeface. Citizen retains its GMT integration low-impact right here, with a basic crimson arrow-tipped hand being the one addition to the bottom three-hand structure. That mentioned, using colour right here towards a largely monochromatic backdrop permits this single aspect to develop into a pure focus. Alternatively, the three o’clock date window is a much less optimistic focus on the wrist. With an unframed presentation and an old-school white date wheel, it’s a component that’s certain to rankle some lovers.
Citizen powers the Promaster Air Automated GMT with its in-house Cal. 9054 computerized GMT motion. Whereas there was a increase in entry-level computerized GMTs over the previous a number of years, few of those new reasonably priced two-time-zone designs sport the coveted quick-adjust native hours hand. The Cal. 9054 does, nonetheless, amid a slew of different fascinating specs together with a decent 50-hour energy reserve at a 28,800 bph beat charge and above-average magnetic resistance (though Citizen doesn’t give precise specs). By way of our testing interval, the Cal. 9054 averaged an honest if unspectacular +7 seconds per day.
To finish the design, Citizen suits the Promaster Air Automated GMT with an impressively sculptural chrome steel three-link bracelet. It’s simple to make a three-link bracelet probably the most generic strap possibility in watchmaking, however Citizen takes an intriguingly offbeat method to this one. As a begin, the hyperlink profile is flowing and virtually wing-shaped, with a pronounced bulge on the main higher floor that step by step tapers in the direction of the flatter decrease hyperlink floor. The middle hyperlinks becoming a member of the bracelet to the case are much more dramatically formed, with a triangular cross-section that creates a pronounced peak on the midpoint of the hyperlink. Add within the crisp linear brushing and the brightly polished accents of the middle hyperlinks, and it is a bracelet that catches the sunshine on the wrist in a hanging, uncommon manner. Even the tip hyperlinks are uniquely sculpted, with a sloping triangular midsection that successfully softens the visible transition between the lugs and the bracelet. In contrast, the two-button stamped clasp is normal entry-level Citizen fare.
After 35 years and a dizzying array of problems, the reliable Citizen Promaster household lastly has an computerized GMT watch to its identify, and the outcomes are genuinely well worth the wait. With a formidable in-house motion, handsomely athletic design, and an array of genuinely spectacular parts at this value level, the brand new Citizen Promaster Air Automated GMT is actually a go-anywhere, do-anything journey timepiece with character to spare. The Citizen Promaster Air Automated GMT is offered now via approved sellers. MSRP for this watch stands at $1,125 USD as of press time. For extra info, please go to the model’s web site.
Mandatory Knowledge>Model: Citizen>Mannequin: Promaster Air Automated GMT>Value: $1,125 USD (as examined)>Dimension: 44.5mm broad, 12.7mm thick>When reviewer would personally put on it: As a go-anywhere, do-anything journey look ahead to extra rugged locations.>Good friend we’d suggest it to first: Specs-minded lovers on the lookout for a succesful, well-made “journey” GMT with out venturing into luxurious pricing.>Greatest attribute of watch: Spectacular in-house motion, stable case match and end, glorious bracelet for the worth level.>Worst attribute of watch: Unfashionably giant dimensions; uninspired case design.
