Great to hear it's got such a nice back story, and that the original seller was happy to help and provide further information.
Serves to remind us of a time that the watches were bought often for the purpose they were designed for, not a fashion item

:
:

: Some of you may have seen my ad - I was trying to sell my 1st
: execution Autavia 2446cGMT with original GF bracelet and papers.
: Some background:
: I had bought this from Ebay at the end of last year - in
: correspondence with the seller Exxx, I had found out that this
: was his grandfather's watch.
: He was a pilot and had apparently bought this watch new in 1969.
: When it came, the instruction pamphlet had a date penned in black
: ink: 15.6.68 - presumably 15 June 1968.
: I emailed the seller, but he had no idea what that date meant.
: So since the pamphlet was already marked, I penned down next to it,
: in blue ink, the serial number: 110353.
: All along I thought the service booklet was unfilled, as was
: mentioned by the seller.

:
:

: Since putting up my ad, I've had some offers that required me to
: break up the set - some wanted the papers, some wanted just the
: watch.
: So this morning I took out the papers for a closer look, and to my
: surprise, it wasn't unfilled as I had originally thought!

: The service booklet is indeed filled, but most of it is in pencil
: and very faded.
: I can just about make out the name of the purchaser Sxxxxxt E
: Wxxxxxxt, with street address and all.
: Date of purchase: 12-25-68!

:
:

: So I email Exxx, the Ebay seller, to share the information with
: him.
: Within an hour, I get an email from Lxxxx Wxxxxxxt, Exxx’s
: father, and the son of Sxxxxxt Wxxxxxxt.
: I’ve copied and pasted it below:

: Ben...This is Lxxxx Wxxxxxxt...Exxx's father. ..my father,
: Sxxxxxt Wxxxxxxt originally purchased the Heuer watch for
: himself as he was an avid pilot and always owned and flew a
: number of aircraft throughout his life. He was a US Navy pilot
: during WW2 and flew Catalina PBY torpedo bombers in the Atlantic
: and Pacific...
: After the war he went to University of Oregon then USC and became a
: teacher...He re-joined the US Air Force as a reserve officer
: during the cold war and flew a variety of transport aircraft in
: support of the Berlin airlift and other missions throughout the
: late 1950s and 1960s...back then they did not have gps or Loran
: navigation. ..they did it with a watch and sun shots with a
: sextant...so he wanted the best available chronograph of the
: time...He bought the Heuer that you now have. I was away at
: college in 1968 when he bought it...He said it was a Christmas
: present to himself... so the watch flew in many US Air Force
: missions. He retired from the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel
: in 1984 and began flying his own private aircraft which he did
: up until his death in 1996...from leukemia...He was 71. I
: inherited the watch thereafter and already owning a more modern
: TAG, I decided that someone else who collected and appreciated
: Heuer watches would better appreciate it...so I asked my son,
: Exxx to sell it for me on Ebay as I do not have an Ebay account.
: I hope that this info helps you to understand the history behind
: the watch...If you have any further questions I would be glad to
: assist you with answers if I can.

: I thought that was a wonderful story, and it adds just so much more
: sentiment and history to this Autavia.
: The bezel may be faded, the hands may be wrong, and I still don't
: know what 15.6.68 means and who wrote it, but no matter, this
: 2446cGMT is now not only a first owner vintage watch, but it's
: also a family heirloom as well.
: It'd be crass for me to try to sell it now given it's provenance,
: so now this is officially off the market.

: Just wanted to share this story with the folks here - I hope you
: enjoy it as much as I did.
: I suspect many will like the bit about 'the best available
: chronograph of the time'! =)

: ben
: Singapore