What Is a Modern Military Watch?

On a military base anywhere in the world, you'll find a variety of watches on the wrists of personnel. What you probably won't find is a watch that the government supplied to service people en masse, as was common in decades past. The compelling history of "issued" military watches is echoed in modern watches design and marketing, but those worn by soldiers today have a very different story.

The History of Issued Military Watches

At one time, the military treated watches as any other necessary equipment and contracted out their production. Adhering to very exact specifications, many of the watches produced for military use in the 20th century have a special place in the imagination of collectors — after all, they had to be very well built, durable, accurate and practical. Soldiers were issued their kit, which included a wristwatch often made by a historic company but sometimes without even branding on the dial.

That situation makes the idea of a "military watch" easy to understand, but times have changed. While there are endless examples of watches with rugged specs and serious looks available today, soldiers mostly have to purchase their own. So if you want a modern watch with the same kind of official military links as the issued watches of old, you might be looking at actual vintage watches. There are modern options, but you should understand exactly what a military watch actually means today.

How Are Watches Used in the Military Today?

Sorry to disappoint, but military regulations related to watches don't appear overly concerned with tough specs and battlefield readiness. They're mostly concerned with how they fit into dress standards: they are merely tolerated, so long as they conform. For the US Marines, for example, "inconspicuous watches are authorized for wear in uniform," while the US Navy Uniform Regulations flatly state: "While in uniform, wristwatches shall be conservative and in good taste. Eccentric or faddish watches are not authorized."

"Eccentric or faddish watches are not authorized."

While people often speak of "the military," of course, there are many militaries in the world and many services, units, etc., each with their own rules and regulations. There are many different situations, and certainly some in which a watch might be required for some activities or prohibited for others. In a highly structured military environment, not to mention in coordinating operations, a personal watch on the wrist might be even more useful than it is for most civilians.

When a brand claims that its watches are "used by" some elite tactical unit or another, this may very well be the case. Those soldiers can probably wear whatever watch they want, and they may have chosen one that's particularly well suited to their work. Vague marketing, however, can lead consumers to imagine the kind of relationship that watch companies had decades ago with militaries. Those days are largely gone, but the "issued" watch remains a potent image in consumers' minds.

The Broad Arrow and Other Military Markings

Omega’s Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 42mm 007 Edition... also known as the most current "Bond watch"

Omega

One way watch brands can show military affiliation is with official markings like the famous British "broad arrow" symbol, which was historically used to mark government property. Some examples of modern watches with the British broad arrow are the James Bond watch from Omega, homages of the Dirty Dozen field watches (the originals of which had the symbol) by the likes of Timor and Smiths, as well as even a Timex collab.

Omega Seamaster Diver 300M

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MI6 isn't exactly equipping its operatives with $10k Omegas, and James Bond is fictional. But we love this diver.

Timor Heritage Field

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The Timor brand has been resurrected to faithfully recreate a famous issued watch of WWII.

Bremont Broadsword Recon

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No broad arrow on the Broadsword, but Bremont is licensed to emblazon its caseback with with Her Majesty's Armed Forces' insignia

CWC G22 Automatic

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With a long history of equipping the military (and civilians) with watches, the broad arrow feels legit on a CWC.

It's illegal in the UK to sell goods with the broad arrow without specific authorization, but a brand can apply for permission to use government symbols through the UK Ministry of Defence Merchandising Programme — and it doesn't seem too tightly restricted, as a number of modern watches available to the public feature it on their dials. These days, this doesn't necessarily mean said watch is or was utilized in a military or government context. (It's a similar deal for NASA branding.)

Special-Order Watches for Military Units

Going a step further, British brand Bremont has obtained permission to use the "signs, symbols and Heraldic Badges of all three services" of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces (army, navy and air force) and released a whole collection of military-themed watches featuring them engraved on the case backs. These are available to the general civilian public.

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Bremont’s Broadsword.

Bremont

Bremont, however, is also an example of a company that works with the military or military-related organizations and makes exclusive, bespoke watches for individual units, squadrons, etc.

While Bremont is very vocal about its military connections, many brands, in fact, make watches for active military and/or veteran organizations. They include the big boys like Rolex and Tudor but also smaller brands like Luminox with its Navy SEALs Foundation collection, Nixon with its Regulus and more.

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Luminox Navy Seal Mens Watch Black Dial

Luminox

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Companies that actually make watches under government contract are indeed rarer, and those that do often don't disclose the contracts' exact nature. CWC supplies the British Ministry of Defense, and specifically, "the CWC SBS watch is currently issued to Royal Marines, Royal Navy incl Sub crew." French watchmaker Yema is said to be an official partner of the French Air Force.

The CWC SBS

CWC

Canada-based Marathon is another example, as an official United States General Services Administration contractor. Many Marathon watches have available dial options that include "US Government," the Canadian maple leaf symbol, U.S. Marine Corps logo and the logo of the Israeli military's Duvdevan and YAMAM units.

The brand says that these watches are built to various militaries' specifications and "issued" to personnel, but you can buy them, too. (Here's a soldier's testimony of using a Marathon TSAR on active duty.)

Watches That Are "Battlefield Tough"

There are, however, plenty of watches available with genuinely tough specs and also that mean military or "tacticool" look (for better or worse). It's well-known that many soldiers (as well as police and personnel in other such professions) choose the eminently durable, reliable and affordable G-Shock watches, particularly the 6900 series.

Various brands also build modern watches to military specifications of the past, including companies that made issued watches historically. These sorts of products are beyond tough enough for most civilian use.

A "Legit" Mil-Watch: Casio G-Shock GW6900

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I see watches advertised all the time as being the same or similar to ones used by Seals, US Special Forces, or Air Force pilots. They’re almost always analog dials. Do military personnel really use these? I’d think that a digital dial would be faster to read but a co-worker said they use analog to read the time with tritium watch hands without pushing a light button.

What’s the truth?