Omega – The Geneva Watch Auction: XV Geneva Saturday, May 7, 2022 | Phillips
The “Alaska Project” was a series of secret projects (four in total) undertaken by Omega in order to supply NASA with space-qualified timepieces. The results of the projects are a highly restricted number of watches which have been extensively used in space and which are now true collector’s grails, considered absolute endgame for Omega collectors – at least the few ones which are not in possessions of Omega, museums, or NASA.
Even before NASA’s most famous Apollo 11 moon landing mission, and under the cover of the codename “ALASKA Project”, OMEGA was working on a secret project to create the perfect space watch. The code-name “Alaska” was chosen to ensure that this secret project would remain as elusive as possible in case of any industrial espionage.
Following the cancellation of the Apollo missions after Apollo 17 (missions 18 through 22), there was no immediate use for the ALASKA Project’s test-watches, so the project was temporarily terminated, though remarkable progress had been made. This first phase of the development can be called “ALASKA I”.
In the early 1970s, Omega began work on a continuation of its secret project, now internally titled “ALASKA II”, which involved several studies and prototypes. The present lot belongs to the first batch of “ALASKA II” prototypes – delivered in 1970 – and is closely related to the production Speedmaster Professional, with less changes than those of the earlier project of 1969. It paired most of the tested technologies of “ALASKA I” with the trusted and legendary Speedmaster “Moonwatch” case of the (then) current reference ST 145.022. The special characteristics of the watch are aimed at improving legibility and usage in space. For example the white dial was considered more readable and the same holds true for the oversized subsidiary dials hands (aptly dubbed “Apollo” hands by Omega). Additionally, some examples are known to have a red anodized aluminum outer protective case.
The “ALASKA II” test-watches were delivered to Houston at the beginning of 1970s. While once again considerable progress had been made, since the Apollo Program had come to an end by the end of 1972, the “ALASKA II” test-watches were not retained by the program office and the series of OMEGA’s Alaska Projects came to a halt once more.
With a virtually flawless dial and and extremely sharp and most likely unpolished case, the present piece represents an enormously scarce occasion for the Omega collector to own what is undoubtedly considered one of the Holiest Grails of Omega production.
