The Citizen Promaster Skyhawk A-T JY8051-08E that we are looking at today is a stunning display of design and is packed full of features. The atomic time feature is particularly intriguing because it’s not found in many watches and has real purpose to those jetsetters and adventure types that find themselves moving between different time zones. This Citizen has a real sense of presence about it due to its size and its bold feel.
It also, and this is a winner, will never need a battery replacement because it harnesses light for power! This is a versatile and functional watch for adventurers.
Skyhawk Dynamic Dial
The Skyhawk has a black dial featuring green accents on some of the sub-dials and important markers. What I really appreciated from the designers on this piece was that they didn’t lose the plot and splash green everywhere but were instead quite intentional with their use of colour. You might be intimidated at first by the dial, and taking in all the sub-dials and LCD displays is a lot but they all serve a purpose. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the features using the manual unlike some watches where you can figure it out yourself.
The dial at the bottom is used to navigate through the different modes. The LCD on the right of the dial shows the digital time as well as the perpetual calendar. The most important function of the digital display on the right is to work through all the possible features of the watch and when going through this process you truly begin to appreciate how much has been packed into the Promaster Skyhawk A-T JY8051-08E. The UTC dual time dial can be found at 12 o’clock which is a useful feature if you are usually working or living between two time zones and need to keep track of that secondary time zone.
All the time indexes are luminous white and are quite boldly placed on the dial. I’m generally not drawn to markers that are too overstated but I do feel like if they were any smaller in terms of size they would be lost amongst all the other markers on the dial. The watch hands, similarly, are also quite bold. I like the style of the sword second hand but the hour and minute hands feel like they could have been a touch thinner so the dial could feel a little less loaded.
Case and Bezel
The watch also features a pilots rotating slide rule bezel which was used to calculate distance and fuel usage in the past. If you still fly vintage aircraft this would be extremely useful otherwise it can be used for a number of different calculations if you are creative enough. The chronograph timer goes up to 24 hours and is controlled by the two buttons at 2 and 4 o’clock.
Unlike some of the older models the buttons are blended in so seamlessly with the case and the crown is nicely nestled in the honed stainless steel casing so that no parts of the watch are protruding. The glass used is a mineral glass which for me is a bit of a strange choice since this timepiece was made for adventure.
The price point for this piece is already fairly high so using sapphire glass to make it more scratch resistant might have been a better choice.
The piece is driven by a Japanese quartz and as mentioned earlier the Eco-Drive functionality means that you will never have to replace the battery due to it being powered by any light. The Eco-Drive function coupled with the atomic time means that this timepiece will never die and it will never lose time. There are few pieces out there that are this reliable.
Final Thoughts
The case is on the larger end of the spectrum at 46.7mm but for this type of watch this is not uncommon. It uses a polyurethane band so that it can withstand everything you put it through but I am sure there are some that will find this a bit uncomfortable which is a bit of a problem because replacing the band on this piece is not so easy or affordable. The clasp is your run-of-the-mill buckle clasp which is common when it comes to the sport watches. The 200m water resistance rating is quite impressive although it is not recommended for diving, rather for water sports and snorkelling.
I enjoy the green accents and particularly the 12 o’clock sub-dial which keeps the secondary time because it has the look of an old target of the planes from the 20th century wars. Overall the Citizen Promaster Skyhawk A-T JY8051-08E looks great on your wrist, it has a smooth but bold look to it and the design team on this timepiece did a great job of not making it stand out too strongly.
To have a look at Citizen’s entire range of watches visit their official website here.
Thanks for review, however, would be nice to mention luminova quality and post some nightshots.