Spitfire Family. IWC Pilots watch line is divided into three separate families. The classic Pilots watch family, the contemporary Top Gun family, and the Spitfire family which pays tribute to a British World War II fighter plane, the Supermarine Spitfire. The revamp of IWC's Spitfire family of watches sees the loss of the basic date and time watch, the dual time watch and leaves us with two excellent chronograph watches.
IWC Spitfire Chronograph Ref. 3878. Prior to the revamp of the line-up this year IWC manufactured a classic Pilots Chronograph watch and a Spitfire Chronograph watch, which except for the color scheme of the hands, dial and strap were all but identical.
The revised IWC Spitfire Chronograph Ref. 3878 achieves a large degree of differentiation from its cousin the IWC Pilots Watch Chronograph Ref. 3777, and is not a very distinct design.
The new IWC Spitfire Chronograph Ref. 3878 now features a cleaner dial with two, instead of three sub-dials. One sub-dial displays the seconds while the second sub-dial is a sixty minute timer for the chronograph function.
The chronograph now includes the flyback function. The two button set-up features a start/stop and reset/restart button. The flyback function allows you to restart the chronograph in a single click, rather than having to go through the stop - reset - start route. The main second hand is used to measure seconds for the chronograph hand while a smaller seconds hand is used to measure continuous seconds in conjunction with the time function.
Like the new IWC Pilots Watch Mark XVII, the date window now displays three date numerals. The current date is the one located in the middle with a small a red arrow further indicating the actual date.
IWC Spitfire Chronograph Ref. 3878 has also grown a bit bigger it case now measuring 43 mm in diameter versus the previous model which had a 42 mm case diameter.
The case is available in stainless steel or 18-carat rose gold. The stainless steel version is available with a brown leather strap or steel bracelet. The rose gold version is only available with the leather strap.
IWC-manufactured 89365 calibre. Of most interest to the true watch lover is the movement. The previous Spitfire Chronograph used the IWC 79320 calibre which was a IWC modified ETA/Valjoux 7750 movement. The new IWC 89365 calibre is an entirely in-house built movement. This movement beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and has a impressive 68 hour power reserve.
While it may not matter to some, having an in-house movement enhances the value of a watch. In this case the flyback function puts the movement a cut above the typical chronograph movement, so you have both something special in terms of function as well as manufacture.
About IWC. IWC or the the "International Watch Co. Schaffhausen" was founded by an American engineer from Boston, Florentine Ariosto Jones, in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in the year 1868. IWC Schaffhausen is notable for being the only major Swiss watch factory located in eastern Switzerland, as the majority of the well-known Swiss watch manufacturers are located in western Switzerland. 
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