The Academy Awards are not only about excellence in films and winning a coveted Oscar statue. It’s also about dressing up for the red carpet. And for the TV cameras.
This tweet, about the museum’s collection of more than 100 flight attendant smocks and aprons sent the Stuck at the Airport fashion reporter down a very deep rabbit hole checking out the fashions.
We love this 1980s-era apron from Japan Airlines
And this one from Western Airlines. Also from the 1980s.
And check out this Delta Air Lines apron from 1973.
“From hot pants and go-go boots to disposable paper dresses, the 1960s and 1970s were known for breaking fashion norms and traditions – even in the airline industry. Mid-century air travel had progressed into a posh experience and airlines built unique brand identities to set themselves apart. Each airline found new ways to attract passengers with amenities like onboard movies, gourmet meals, and glamorous flight attendants.“
This exhibition is put together by the Phoenix Airport Museum and includes eight flight attendant uniforms, historic photographs, and a variety of airline amenity objects.
If you are passing through Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, look for the Style in the Aisle exhibit in Terminal 4, level 2 near ticketing through October 2021.
In the meantime, we’ve got some images to share here.
Highlights of the exhibit include Hughes Airwest’s 1977 “sundance yellow” dress with matching bucket-style hat and an American Airlines plaid “Americana” uniform with a raccoon-fur cap. A Trans World Airlines (TWA) single-use, gold paper dress – part of the “Foreign Accents” collection – is also on display.
Airline amenities on display include fine china and themed cocktail swizzle sticks. There’s also a first-class menu featuring caviar and lobster, and an ashtray and lighter with airline logos.
64,000 Delta employees got new uniforms on May 29 and instead of sending all the old clothing to landfills the airline donated more than 350,000 pounds of clothing to Looptworks to be upcycled and repurposed.
New Zac Posen uniforms for Delta Air Lines
Delta and Looptworks plan to make backpacks, passport covers, messenger and tote bags and other accessories out of those old uniforms and begin selling them in the fall.
Airports – good ones –Â do their best to offer service and amenities that will make your time in the terminal bearable and, increasingly, enjoyable.
What amenities are offered most?
What amenities are airports poised to add?
And what amenities are disappearing from airports?
The folks at Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA) did a survey of their members to find out and are sharing the results today of the 2017 ACI-NA Guest Experience Management and Passenger Amenities Survey.
The top 10 most commonly offered airport amenities and services in 2017 are:
ATM Services
Gift Shops / News Stands
Airport Websites
Electrical Charging Stations
Restaurants and Bars
Lost and Found
Parking / Taxi and Limousine Services
Free Wi-Fi
Pre-Security Pet Relief Facilities
Food and Beverage Vending Machines
No big surprises there, but ACI-NA found out that over the next three to five years, passengers can expect new and expanded airport amenities and services such as:
Nursing mothers’ rooms and pods
Post-security pet relief facilities
Children’s play areas
Airfield observation areas
Adult changing and washroom facilities.
And, as passenger needs change, ACI-NA notes, airports are beginning to phase out unnecessary or redundant amenities and services.
So, get ready to say bye-bye over the next three to five years to:Â payphones, banking services, and smoking rooms at airports.
Why no more pay phones?
“Pay phones take up a lot of valuable real estate considering their low usage now in the smart phone age,” said ACI-NA spokesman Scott Elmore, “They are being replaced with electrical charging stations and free Wi-Fi to keep people connected.”
But what about kids or people who don’t have cell phones. Or have cell phones that are out of power?
“Airports are very cognizant of the need to remain accessible,” said Elmore, “So we expect to see the deployment of more courtesy phones with free local and international calling or calling cards for passengers in need.”