The Swiss Haute Horlogerie manufacture Audemars Piguet is proud to reveal its new technical research and development breakthrough (RD#3) with the Royal Oak Extra-Plat Automatic Flying Tourbillon. This anniversary model in stainless steel, 39 mm in diameter and 8.1 mm thick, is the first “Jumbo” tourbillon model in history and introduces the Manufacture’s brand new ultra-thin automatic tourbillon movement, Caliber 2968. measuring just 3.4mm tall and adorned with a combination of traditional and contemporary hand embellishments. To bring this timepiece to life, Audemars Piguet watchmakers overcame several technical challenges while paying particular attention to aesthetic details. Pushing back the limits of the possible, this model will be completed in September by a second version of 37 mm in diameter adorned with a dial in a different color for thinner wrists.
Royal Oak Automatic Ultra-Thin Flying Tourbillon (RD#3) 39mm © Audemars Piguet
A new ultra-thin flying tourbillon movement
At the heart of this new innovation is Caliber 2968, an ultra-thin self-winding flying tourbillon movement that took five years to develop. The engineers and watchmakers at Audemars Piguet took up many challenges in order to integrate this complication, hitherto reserved for diameters of 41 mm, into the reduced volume of a “Jumbo”, a first for the Manufacture and one of the rare examples in the watchmaking world in general. Given the limited volume available, this automatic flying tourbillon had to be creatively completely redesigned in order to reduce the thickness needed to house this complication by repositioning certain components. Equipped for the first time with a peripheral drive, the tourbillon carriage is also made of titanium. The combination of these two elements makes it possible not only to make the distribution of energy in the tourbillon more fluid, but also to lighten and refine the latter.
Royal Oak Automatic Ultra-Thin Flying Tourbillon (RD#3) 39mm © Audemars Piguet
In order to make the tourbillon and the movement more visible, Audemars Piguet engineers have completely redesigned the architecture of the mechanism. Pushing the aesthetic details to their climax, the Royal Oak Extra-Plat Automatic Flying Tourbillon features a new escapement while revealing the inner workings of the movement as much as possible. The geometries and positioning of the balance arms have also been revised so that the beating of the heart of the watch is even more present. The technical design of the movement brings the flying tourbillon flush just above the dial, for an even stronger visual experience.
The hand-decorated movement components, visible through the sapphire caseback, combine the dynamism and classicism of the re-entrant angles with the modernity of the drawn lines – a finish that appears on the mainplate and the bridges and replaces the traditional Côtes de Genève. The openworked and rhodium-plated bridges offer a contrasting view of the elements of the mechanism in rose gold tones.
“50 years after its creation, the Royal Oak continues to evolve by defying fashion and convention and its evolution will continue for the next 50 years. It represents an inexhaustible source of technical and aesthetic developments, as evidenced by this new extra-thin flying tourbillon which makes its debut on the classic 39 mm “Jumbo” and the 37 mm diameter models. The architecture of the movement has been designed to offer a unique view of the reduced cage while providing a captivating contrast of finishes. » Michael Friedman Head of Complications
A refined aesthetic
The new RD#3 remains faithful to the aesthetic codes of the iconic “Jumbo” models. The stainless steel case and bracelet feature the collection’s hand-brushed and satin-finished finishes, while the Petite Tapisserie Midnight Blue, Nuage 50 dial pays homage to the original Royal Oak. The color is obtained by the PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) process, guaranteeing a uniform and long-lasting tone on all the dials.
Royal Oak Automatic Ultra-Thin Flying Tourbillon (RD#3) 39mm © Audemars Piguet
As with the 1972 model, this new “Jumbo” reference features tub-shaped hour markers and hands with luminescent coating for optimal readability in the dark. The Audemars Piguet signature, like the minute scale, is printed in white on the tapestry. Operating its rotations at 6 o’clock, the titanium flying tourbillon cage stands out from the blue canvas of the tapestry to create an ethereal contrast with a hypnotizing effect.
This contemporary version, on the other hand, differs from the original model by its sapphire crystal case-back which allows the new ultra-thin movement and the dedicated weight to be admired.
an oscillating weight dedicated to the 50th anniversary of royal oak
The Royal Oak Automatic Extra-Thin Flying Tourbillon has a central oscillating weight, mounted on ball bearings, equipped with two reversers2 which ensure bi-directional winding. The 50th anniversary logo as well as the Audemars Piguet signature are engraved on this rhodium-plated 22-carat rose gold weight specially developed for the anniversary of the Royal Oak. Matching the tones of the stainless steel case and bracelet, it is also decorated with the polished and satin finishes that have become the hallmark of the collection.
Royal Oak Automatic Ultra-Thin Flying Tourbillon (RD#3) 39mm © Audemars Piguet
A tradition of technical prowess
In 1986, Audemars Piguet introduced the world’s first automatic tourbillon wristwatch. Imagined by Jacqueline Dimier, the design places the tourbillon escapement on the dial side for the very first time. Caliber 2870 is then housed in an extra-thin case measuring just 5.3 mm thick. Its titanium tourbillon cage remains to this day one of the smallest in the world with a diameter of 7.2 mm, as well as one of the lightest with a weight of just 0.123 grams. This model is known as the Tourbillon Automatic Râ, because Jacqueline Dimier’s design gave the tiny regulator (one of the smallest ever produced) the appearance of the sun whose rays spread across the dial. This complicated wristwatch, produced in 401 copies until 1992, opened a new path for Haute Horlogerie which then revived prestigious mechanisms, including those of tourbillon watches.
Thirty years after Jacqueline Dimier’s model, the Manufacture, known for its ability to innovate, is launching a series of Research and Development models. In 2015, Audemars Piguet unveiled its first prototype RD#1 Royal Oak Concept Répétition Minutes Supersonnerie. The result of 8 years of research in partnership with EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) and with a panel of experts made up of watchmakers, engineers, musicians and sound specialists, this watch incorporates Supersonnerie3 technology. The subject of 3 patents, this system, which combines a striking mechanism and an innovative box architecture, marks a significant progression in terms of acoustic performance, diffusion volume and sound beauty. Presented at the SIHH that same year, the RD#1 will enable the Manufacture to launch a year later the marketable version of the Royal Oak Concept Minute Repeater Supersonnerie, winner of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in 2016 in the “Mechanical Exception” category. “.
Royal Oak Automatic Ultra-Thin Flying Tourbillon (RD#3) 39mm © Audemars Piguet
In 2019, Audemars Piguet launched the Royal Oak Calendar Perpetual Ultra-Thin Automatic 41 mm, the innovative prototype of which was presented a year earlier at the SIHH under the name RD#2. This calendar watch, whose case is 6.3 mm thick, houses a movement that is only 2.89 mm thick, making it at that time the thinnest automatic calendar wristwatch in the world. To achieve this feat, the calendar functions generally mounted on three levels have been brought together on the same plane. The Manufacture’s experts have also developed two patented innovations relating to the integration of the end-of-month cam into the date wheel and the association of the month cam to the month wheel. Marking a turning point in the history of complicated watches, the Royal Oak Calendar Perpetual Ultra-Plat Automatic will earn Audemars Piguet the Grand Prix de l’Aiguille d’Or at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in November 2019.
This year, the Manufacture in Le Brassus reveals its new technical breakthrough with the Royal Oak Extra-Plat Automatic Flying Tourbillon. Following in the footsteps of previous innovations, this RD#3 driven by the new Caliber 2968 combines technical innovation and aesthetic refinement for a subtle tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Royal Oak.