{"id":26024,"date":"2021-03-30T14:48:44","date_gmt":"2021-03-30T14:48:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/the-richard-mille-rm-50-02-acj-a-million-dollar-plus-beauty\/"},"modified":"2025-08-24T08:29:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-24T06:29:26","slug":"richard-mille-rm-50-02-acj-hands-on-photos-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/en\/richard-mille-rm-50-02-acj-hands-on-photos-price\/","title":{"rendered":"The Richard Mille RM 50-02 ACJ million-dollar plus watch hands-on"},"content":{"rendered":"

The new\u00a0<\/span>Richard Mille RM 50-02 ACJ<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0shocked the industry when it came out for its sticker price rather than the specs sheet. Last Saturday, we posted our first picture on social media, receiving an impressive response after disclosing its retail price: 1.1450.000 euros.<\/span><\/p>\n

What makes the\u00a0<\/span>Richard Mille RM 50-02 ACJ <\/span><\/strong>a one-million-euro-plus wristwatch? There are multiple factors contributing to such an impressive price, including technical and non-technical aspects.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Richard<\/p>\n

Never build a retail price upon its full production cost; Richard Mille being Richard Mille, such a marketing rule has a whole new meaning when applied to the brand.<\/span><\/p>\n

Richard Mille<\/span><\/strong> crafted their\u00a0<\/span>RM 50<\/span><\/strong>\u2013<\/span>22<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>ACJ<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0upon signing an exclusive partnership with\u00a0<\/span>Airbus Corporate Jets<\/span><\/strong>, <\/span>Airbus<\/span><\/strong>\u2018s\u00a0department devoted to luxury corporate aviation, whose customers include top executives,\u00a0CEOs, and entrepreneurs.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Richard<\/p>\n

Richard Mille<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0brought partnership to new heights; the brand introduced technologies mimicking F1, akin to a racing team, whose single seater often is the result of a car and engine sourced from different companies.<\/span><\/p>\n

The brand<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Benoit Defforge<\/span><\/strong>,\u00a0<\/span>Airbus Corporate Jets\u00a0CEO, <\/span><\/strong>partnered to engineer a timepiece encompassing product and technology from both companies.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"RichardDon\u2019t call it a \u201cco-branding\u201d project. The sole\u00a0<\/span>Airbus<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0wording you\u2019ll spot is the official brand\u2019s logo etched on the <\/span>crown<\/span><\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since it hit the market, <\/span>Airbus<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0stood out for advanced technology like \u201c<\/span>fly by wire<\/span><\/em>\u201d piloting \u2013 the\u00a0<\/span>Airbus<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>A320<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0became, in\u00a0<\/span>1984<\/span><\/strong>, the first aircraft ever to adopt a full-digital fly-by-wire control system \u2013 and composite materials for fuselage and other assemblies. Same Richard Mille did.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"RichardSylvain Marian<\/span><\/strong>,\u00a0<\/span>Airbus Corporate Jets Creative Designer<\/span><\/strong>, sketched the\u00a0<\/span>Richard Mille RM 50-02 ACJ<\/span><\/strong> in the shape of a porthole-like\u00a0case\u00a0secured to the middle section via \u201c<\/span>Torq\u00a0set<\/span><\/em>\u201d screws as seen on an\u00a0aircraft.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"RichardSuch a screw is equally functional and aircraft-like since it allows the watchmaker to tune the torque finely, a fundamental requirement when assembling an aircraft.<\/span><\/p>\n

Again, the <\/span>chronograph<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0push buttons are surrounded by frames drawing their inspiration from an aircraft engine\u2019s supporting brackets.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"CreativeThe\u00a0<\/span>white<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>cover<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is a\u00a0<\/span>thin layer of matte white\u00a0ceramic<\/span><\/strong>. Curved and soft touch, it covers\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>titanium<\/span><\/strong>\u2013<\/span>aluminium<\/span><\/strong> mid-section.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, RM\u2019s engineers adopted an\u00a0<\/span>ATZ<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0composite \u2013 <\/span>ATZ<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0standing for \u201c<\/span>Alumina Toughened Zirconia<\/span><\/em>\u201c) \u2013 instead of standard zirconia oxide.\u00a0<\/span>ATZ<\/span><\/strong>\u2018s scratch-resistance stops at\u00a0<\/span>1.400<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0HV; still, it is 20 to 30 times structurally more resistant than any zirconium\u2013oxide\u2013based ceramic.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"RichardThe\u00a0case\u00a0is\u00a0<\/span>Richard<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Mille<\/span><\/strong> from any angles, crafted in a\u00a0<\/span>titanium\u2013aluminium<\/span><\/strong> Alloy<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0called \u201c<\/span>TiAl<\/span><\/em>\u201c, often used to build a jet\u2019s propeller.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lightness and resistance are key design pillars at Richard Mille, as they are in commercial aviation, here applied to a <\/span>tourbillon<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0with a\u00a0<\/span>split<\/span><\/strong>\u2013<\/span>seconds<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>chronograph<\/span><\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Richard<\/p>\n

Every single part came with a purpose and a challenging weight-to-performance target. On a\u00a0<\/span>Richard Mille RM50-02 ACJ<\/span><\/strong>, such an approach is raised to new levels.<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0<\/span>split-seconds\u00a0chronograph<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0action is so precise and vibration-free, according to the brand, that no vibration during start, stop and reset is visible under a slow-motion camera.<\/span><\/p>\n

E<\/span>xtreme<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>skeletonisation<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0helps the owner enjoy a view of gearings and fine engineering at work. Haute-horlogerie features include the\u00a0signature <\/span>H<\/span><\/strong>\u2013<\/span>N<\/span><\/strong>\u2013<\/span>W<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0device engineered by\u00a0<\/span>Renaud<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0&\u00a0<\/span>Papi<\/span><\/strong>, and a torque gauge to display the amount of power available\u00a0in the mainspring.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"RichardIs a\u00a0<\/span>Richard Mille RM 50-02 ACJ<\/span><\/strong> the ultimate \u201c<\/span>hyper sportswatch<\/span><\/em>\u201c? Yes, it is. Richard Mille, being\u00a0<\/span>Richard<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Mille<\/span><\/strong>, there\u2019s no gap between marketing promise and content delivery, and that is what makes the brand outperform the competition.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Richard It is the closest watchmaking object to an aircraft or aerospace engineering you can get. RM\u2019s approach to the industry made it what it stands for.<\/p>\n

A portion of its retail price is in its exceptional concept and execution; the remainder is the unique value proposition that no other brand in the business can achieve.<\/p>\n