Eaglemoss Military Watches Collection.

From starting life in 1917 as the Imperial Russian Air Unit, by 1918 the few resources were taken over by the Workers and Peasants Red Air Fleet, several name changes later and the Red Army Air Forces or VVS was established in 1925.
Following expansion the VVS soon had the worlds largest bomber fleet, by the outbreak of World War II 95% of these bombers were the Topolev SB.
The Soviet expansion of it's air force continued through the War and beyond, in 1954 the VVS detached from the Red Army to become its own force, Sturmanskie Aviators watches of the period were exclusive to serving members of the VVS and were not available publicly.This was also true of the Strela watches, including the Cosmos Chronograph watches worn by Soviet Cosmonauts, in the 1960s and 70s
The VVS had some superb aircraft like the Su-27 Flanker, but the end of the cold war saw the decline in investment in Russia's military. Falling personnel numbers and delayed pay caused a drop in moral that lasted a decade. only recently has Vladimir Putin brought back investment and a new emphasis in Military strength.



Case
Gunmetal/Bronze colour case 44mm diameter, 46.4 with the crown, 53mm lug to lug 22mm wide
Interior aperture 38.8mm across, 11.2mm deep. 6mm Crown 38mm flat glass
Case engraved with watch description. Russian Aviator.
Dial
38mm Olive Green dial, black printed minutes scale at outer edge. Arabic minute/seconds numbers every 5 minutes
Hours indicated with Luminous Green Arabic numerals from 1 through 12 inclusive.
Secondary 13-24 hour scale printed in white inside the standard hour markers.
Polished, Sword style, hours and minutes hands filled with green luminous paint, Seconds hand is slim and unpainted.
Strap
Leather with two raised padded lines and wite stiching, 22mm wide,narrows to a 20mm polished Gunmetal/Bronze colour buckle. approx. fitting 175-220mm


detail of hands and dial

under certain light conditions the green numbers blend with the face colour making the watch virtually unreadable, I find it very unlikely that this colour combination would ever have been used by pilots who rely heavily on accurate timings.

The specials often have a Sunon movement this one is a PE39, which is almost exactly the same size and shape as the AL55a which is usually found in these three hand movements, some reports say they are not as well built as the Epson.

For a watch that has been marketed as a special edition I can find little to recommend about it, I have asked several times for some kind of explanation regarding the pricing of the special at £25, if it had been £15 the reduced numbers sold may have been a factor but I have yet to see a satisfactory reply

This Poljot Aviator is currently available from several online retailers and is for all practical comparison the same watch worn by actual Russian Pilots