Praesidus is a veteran-driven watch brand that aims to recreate the timepieces worn by WWII heroes.

Praesidus watches tell a story of courage, heroism, and patriotism that can be shared with generations to come. This is your opportunity to own a special piece of history and be a part of the story.   

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to own a piece of history with the launch of Praesidus Watches special edition D-Day Watches available June 6, 2024. 

THE PROJECT–80th Anniversary of D-Day

Two years ago, in commemoration for the 78th Anniversary of D-Day, Praesidus released an A-11 “Marston Mat”. The dial was made out of a D-Day Marston Mat found near UTAH Beach, Normandy.

Jump to 2024 and, with the upcoming 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Praesidus knew they had an opportunity to immortalize this anniversary & the history behind it. By chance, thanks to their relationships within the veteran & D- Day community, they landed on two “hamburger” doors that came from two D-Day veteran C-47 Skytrains.

These planes were used to ferry airborne troops such as Tom Rice (101st Airborne) from England to Normandy in the early morning of June 6th 1944. Using their experience from the A-11 Marston mat, they managed to cut the C-47’s aluminum doors into dials, keeping the original wear & tear accumulated by these planes during their combat service in WW2.

A D-Day C-47 Repurposed
A Piece of History Encased in a WW2 US Mil-Spec Watch

”Hamburger Door” A-11
An A-11 design meshed with a C-47 Skytrain Fuselage

This watch is a special edition limited to only 500 numbered pieces per model, the C-47 A-11 D-Day is powered by an automatic movement, and has a retail price of $550.00. It is matched with a choice of “Invasion Strap” NATO and brown leather strap. 

THE C-47 SPECIFICATIONS

Case: 38mm Stainless Steel 10 ATM Water Resistance w/ Screw Down Crown

Hands: Sword Hands w/ Super Luminova

Dial: C-47 Skytrain Aviation Grade Aluminum w/ Super Luminova Indexes

Glass: Double Domed Sapphire Crystal

Movement: Miyota 9039 Automatic

Straps: “Invasion Strap” NATO & Brown Leather strap

THE PROCESS

If you would like to learn more about this incredible watch, how it was made and the history behind it, click here!

SPECIAL OFFERS

• Praesidus Watches is offering a 15% military discount to veterans. If you are interested in purchasing this watch with a military discount please email the following to assist, you will need to provide verification of military service: akshay@praesidus.com
• Praesidus is also offering a Free extra NATO strap for the first 250 orders!
• Purchase both the Type 44 Sand Dial and C-47 A-11 D-Day Watch for a special price of $1000.00 as a special offer. 

TYPE 44 SAND DIAL WATCH

This beautiful watch is also debuting on June 6, 2024 in time for the 80th Anniversary celebrations of D-Day. 

THE PROJECT-Utah Beach Sand & Landing Maps

Alongside the C-47 Skytrain A-11 Edition, Praesidus had the opportunity to work hand in hand with the mayor of Sainte-Maire-Du-Mont & the neighboring Utah Beach museum to offer a creative commemoration piece. They’ve collected sand from Utah Beach on the 79th Anniversary of D-Day (2023) and subsequently applied the sand directly onto a watch dial.

Praesidus then got creative with the idea and, instead of having a single “sand” dial, they’ve ended up with three separate dials. The first dial is a full Utah Beach Sand dial. The two other dials are laid on top of the sand and are meant to represent the coast of Normandy where all 5 D-Day Beaches were situated. The “color” dial represents the sea while, the uncovered sand dial is meant to represent the actual beaches where 150,000 soldiers landed. These five beaches (Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, Sword) are also marked directly onto the dial, giving a unique look to the watch.

Designed in collaboration with the Mayor of Sainte-Marie-Du-Mont, this project is their more creative take on how to commemorate the d-Day landings for the 80th Anniversary. They are going to be bringing over 30 watches to these D-Day celebrations & plan on giving one watch to every WW2 Veteran in attendance at Utah Beach as a thank you for their service.

You can own a piece of this history as well. Again, they will be available for sale June 6th and the same offers above apply to the this watch.

TYPE 44 SAND DIAL SPECIFICATIONS

Case: 38mm Stainless Steel 10 ATM Water Resistance

Hands: Sword Hands w/ Super Luminova

Dial: Triple Layer Dial with UTAH BEACH Sand

Glass: Double Domed Acrylic Crystal

Movement: Miyota 9039 Automatic

Straps: Blue/Black Tropic Rubber Strap, Green Two Piece, NATO Strap

HOW TO PURCHASE

If you are interested in purchasing either the C-47 A-11 D-Day Watch or the Type 44 Sand Dial Watch and would like to receive a military discount please email: akshay@praesidus.com to assist in purchasing. Praesidus also has a couple of other special offers that they can help you with. 

Or, you can visit the website here: https://praesidus.com/pages/c-47-a-11-dday