Here we have a 1990s Zenith El Primero Rainbow Flyback 40mm 02.0480.405 made for the French Ministry of Defence. It required a timepiece for their pilots, designed to withstand the high “G” forces and magnetic fields they experienced; the tender was issued in 1997.  The brushed 40mm stainless steel case curves with thick, tapered drilled lugs over your wrist. A lug-to-lug length of 46mm and a case thickness of 12.5mm give the watch an impressive wrist presence. Down the right side, we have the recessed chronograph pushers and a crown in the centre with deep knurling for grip. The stainless steel bezel has deep knurling and a black aluminium 60-minute insert with silver numerals, markings and the first 20 minutes highlighted. A flat sapphire crystal sits above a matte black dynamic dial. An outer Telemeter scale chapter ring surrounds the minutes precisely executed, Arabic numerals are coated in a thick layer of Tritium marking the hours, the chronograph consists of a colourful 30-minute register with an orange hand, at 6 o’clock a 12-hour register with a Tritium coated hand and at 9 o’clock small seconds with a Tritium coated hand, between the four and five a colour matched date window. Slender white sword hands are filled with Tritium and complemented by an orange arrow-pointed chronograph hand; at noon, we have the Zenith  El Primero motif and “Automatic” printed underneath, completing this striking Rainbow Flyback chronograph. On the reverse, a screw-down case back with the details of the watch engraved around the edge and the Zenith shield in the centre; inside an Automatic Zenith Cal. 405, 31 Jewels beating at 36,000 Beats per hour, this column-wheel flyback chronograph is made up of 331 components. The watch comes paired with its original chunky 20mm Zenith five-link stainless steel bracelet with a concealed butterfly clasp and will fit up to a 7.35-inch wrist.