Citizen doesn’t tend to make a fuss when it slips a new variant into a long-running line. The watch just appears, usually on a regional site before the rest of the world catches up, and you hear about it from a forum post or a stray listing. That’s roughly how this one surfaced. Say hello to the Citizen Nighthawk CA0897-04H, a grey-on-grey take on the brand’s pilot chronograph.
The Nighthawk has been part of the Promaster world since the late 1980s, built around the look of military helicopter cockpit instruments. That’s the whole appeal. I’ve got a fully blacked-out GMT version. A busy dial, dense scales, and a layout that rewards a second look more than a first glance. This reference keeps the familiar 42mm stainless steel case and the inner rotating bezel paired with a printed tachymeter scale. What changes is the finish. Instead of the black ion plating Citizen has leaned on for recent Nighthawks, the CA0897-04H wears a grey ion-plated case and rides on a grey nylon strap rather than a bracelet.
When I first saw these, my brain went somewhere unexpected. There’s a rugged, almost Breitling quality to the grey monochrome treatment, and I mean that as a compliment to Citizen. Part of what makes the watch interesting is the scale layout. You get a rotating 60-minute elapsed-time bezel and a separate tachymeter printed around the dial, and seeing both on one watch is rarer than you’d think. On the wrist, that should read as a lot of information packed into a fairly compact pilot chronograph.
A couple of things are still up in the air. Citizen hasn’t confirmed US pricing, and while the steel-bracelet sibling, the CA0890-54H, gives us a rough anchor, that model launched higher than the older Nighthawks people tend to quote. From what I can find, we should expect this to come in at around ~$500. The water resistance is the bigger head-scratcher. Nighthawks have carried a 200-meter rating for decades, yet Citizen’s own listing for this reference says 100 meters. Either way, I wouldn’t be super upset if it’s 100m for a pilot-y chronograph.
Inside is the B612 Eco-Drive caliber, the same solar movement running across the current Nighthawks, with a 1/5-second chronograph, date, and 12/24-hour time. It charges off any light source and never needs a battery, which has always been part of the Nighthawk’s low-maintenance pitch.
So this is Citizen doing what it does well, taking a watch people already trust and giving it a darker, more tactical attitude. Whether the grey finish and nylon strap are enough to pull it out from under the radar, or whether it stays a regional curiosity that never officially reaches US shelves, is the part we’ll have to sit with for now.
Co-Founder & Senior Editor
Michael Peñate is an American writer, photographer, and podcaster based in Seattle, Washington. His work typically focuses on the passage of time and the tools we use to connect with that very journey. From aviation to music and travel, his interests span a multitude of disciplines that often intersect with the world of watches – and the obsessive culture behind collecting them.