The Universal Genève Polerouter was designed in 1954 by Gérald Genta, then 23, to mark Scandinavian Airlines’ new transpolar route. It was first called the “Polarouter”. A circa 1954 example, reference 20217-3, sold by Aguttes has a 35mm round stainless steel case with lyre-shaped lugs made by Huguenin Frères, a screw-down caseback and a signed crystal. Its “crosshair” dial carries engraved hour markers, dauphine hands and central seconds. The first movement was the automatic calibre 138SS, a “bumper” automatic. The brief called for a watch able to withstand extreme temperatures, shocks and the magnetic fields met when flying near the pole, and the original used a patented two-part dial construction to protect the movement. It matters as Genta’s first great design and as one of the earliest watches built around the needs of jet-age airline crews.

SAS launched the first commercial transpolar flight on 15 November 1954, from Copenhagen to Los Angeles over the North Pole, cutting 2,600km from the usual route. Crews received watches with the SAS logo on the dial, a version reportedly made in only a three-digit quantity. Once the model reached the general public it was renamed “Polerouter”, a change Phillips dates to 1956, and it became a commercial success, priced close to a Rolex Explorer. In 1955 the bumper calibre gave way to the slim calibre 215 “Microtor” with a micro-rotor, which led to a patent dispute with Hamilton and Buren that was settled in 1958. Many variations followed until 1969, including the Polerouter Sub, Polerouter Day-Date and Polerouter Jet.

Collectors and writers treat the Polerouter as a mid-century icon and a key early work of the designer who later drew the Royal Oak and the Nautilus, and some enthusiasts rank it alongside the Speedmaster and the Explorer. Vintage examples have long been affordable: Aguttes sold the circa 1954 Polarouter above for 3,936 euros against an estimate of 1,000 to 2,000 euros, and the brand’s revival has renewed interest in vintage pieces. The original 1954 model is no longer produced, but the name has returned: after Breitling and Partners Group acquired Universal Genève in 2023, the brand marked the 70th anniversary of the SAS flight with three Polerouter tribute pieces in 2024 and relaunched the Polerouter in 2026 as a range of 11 new models with the UG-110 micro-rotor calibre.