The annual calendar is truly a technological marvel.

While it plays second fiddle to the perpetual calendar in the minds of most collectors, the reality is that the construction of this calendar mechanism — which generally requires adjusting only once per year, at the end of February — is equally challenging, and in some cases, requires even more components.

This particular annual calendar is special: Part of IWC’s Big Pilot collection, it’s first and foremost an aviator’s watch, but nonetheless incorporates a complex, in-house movement to display the time, day, date, and month. Pretty darn cool, if you ask us!

A Reference IW502702 dating to the 2020s, it’s housed in a 46mm stainless steel case with a sapphire crystal, a signed ‘onion’ crown, and a polished bezel. It features a luminous sunburst grey dial with printed white Arabic indices, a matching handset, month, day, and date apertures at 12:00, a sub-seconds dial at 9:00, and an 8-day power reserve indicator at 3:00.

Powered by the automatic, in-house IWC Calibre 52850 visible via an exhibition caseback, it comes paired to a brown leather strap with a signed, stainless steel deployant clasp. What’s more, the watch is in excellent condition and includes its factory goodies.

We know — your phone can give you all the information that this sophisticated IWC displays on its dial, and for much less financial outlay. But that’s not why you’re here on Analog/Shift, is it?

Get this one on your wrist and you’ll see what we mean!