Braniff International Airways hostess uniform by Emilio Pucci 1966 Boots by Beth Levine SFO Museum –
Eighty-five years of airline fashion are now on view at San Francisco International Airport, courtesy of the SFO Museum.
Fashion In Flight: A History of Airline Uniform Design includes over 70 complete ensembles and accessories from the likes of Dior, Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, Oleg Cassini, Vivienne Westwood and others and offers insight into the design history and evolution of the airline uniform, its iconic status in popular culture, and its dynamic relationship to the world of fashion.
Here are more samples from the exhibition, which is on view through January 2017 in the International Terminal Main Hall & in the Aviation Museum and Library.
Trans World Airlines hostess uniform by Oleg Cassini 1955 Briny Marlin Coat & Suit Company Hat by Mae Hanauer SFO Museum
Virgin Atlantic Airways flight attendant uniform by Vivienne Westwood 2014 Courtesy of Virgin Atlantic Airways /SFO Museum
Although flying itself may not be as glamorous and carefree and unusual an experience as the vintage advertisements tell us, being a flight attendant still offers some cool travel perks and a paycheck.
So, during a visit to Houston to observe a day of flight attendant training for United Airlines, I was not totally surprised to learn that it is still not uncommon for someone to apply for the job and get accepted into the training program having never flown in a plane.
Vonn Crosby, now an experienced United flight attendant and a Service Training Team Leader for Inflight Training, was one of those people – and it turned out just fine for her.
And whether they’ve flown before or not, it will probably turn out just fine for the students I joined for a day of international service training that included learning how to prep and serve a premium class meal.
See my full story about some of the skills you’ll need to become a flight attendant in my piece over at the Runway Girl network.
Here’s part of a fun slide show I put together for CNBC Road Warrior and NBC News Travel on some fashionable and, at times, frivolous uniforms worn by airline flight attendants over the years.
Courtesy International Women’s Air & Space Museum
Since 1930, when efficient, caped nurses became the first stewardesses, it’s been a tradition for flight attendants to look great while making sure airline customers are comfortable and safe.
The role of the flight attendant hasn’t really changed, but cabin crew outfits certainly have. Here’s a look at some of the chic, fashionable and intriguing uniforms that have been spotted in the skies.
Courtesy: The Boeing Company
In 1930, Ellen Church became the first airline stewardess after convincing Boeing Air Transport (now United Airlines) that the presence of onboard nurses would go a long way in helping early passengers overcome their fear of flying.
Seven other registered nurses soon joined Church’s team, gathering to pose for this photo wearing uniforms made of dark green wool, with matching green and gray wool capes.
A Braniff 1966 Pucci uniform. From the collection of Cliff Muskiet www.uniformfreak.com
“Back in the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s all stewardess uniforms looked alike,” said Cliff Muskiet, curator of Uniform Freak, an online museum of flight attendant uniforms. The only colors used were navy blue, dark green and brown for winter uniforms and light blue, light green and beige for summer uniforms, said Muskiet.
It gave stewardesses “a very conservative look,” he said. During the mid-to-late 1960s, however, airlines began turning to fashion designers and ad agencies to cultivate a hipper, sexier image for flight attendants. In 1966, Braniff International Airways crew members would be hard to miss wearing this eye-catching, geometric print dress with matching tights by Italian designer Emilio Pucci.
Courtesy: The Braniff Collection
A titillating print and TV advertising campaign for Braniff in 1965 was called the “Air Strip” and featured a Pucci-designed uniform with several layers that could be removed during a flight.
“The TV commercial depicted a stewardess performing an airborne striptease,” said Victoria Vantoch, author of “The Jet Sex—Airlines Stewardesses and the Making of an American Icon.”
“Braniff turned the stewardess into a patently sexual icon and other airlines soon followed,” she said.
Image: Braniff Bubble Helmet Braniff Collection, The History of Aviation Collection, Eugene McDermott Library, University of Texas at Dallas.
In the mid-1960s Pucci also created an unusual clear plastic bubble helmet as part of the uniform line designed for Dallas-based Braniff. The helmets weren’t intended to be worn into space, but rather to protect a flight attendant’s hairdo if she needed to walk across a windy tarmac.
I’ll be back with part two of this slide show in a future post, but in the meantime, here’s a link to the full slide show on CNBC Road Warrior.
If you’re passing through San Francisco International Airport on Tuesday, August 20, 2013, be sure to stop by the Louis A Turpen Aviation Museum in the International Terminal for Flight Attendant Celebration Day, beginning at 10 a.m.
United Air Lines stewardess uniform 1957–1958, courtesy SFO Museum
If you happen to be at San Francisco International Airport on August 20th, 2013, make your way over to the library at the Louis Turpen Aviation Museum in the International Terminal for Flight Attendant Celebration Day.
The event will run from 10 am until 3 pm and celebrate the history of flight attendants with talks, short subject films and commemorations, along with complimentary refreshments and free validated parking.
