AOL published a History of Flight Attendant Uniforms article:
Flight attendant attire has varied over the years from prim and proper to all-out sexy to subtly sophisticated.
Flight attendants are the most important point of contact between an airline and its passengers. As the “face” of an airline, their appearance and behavior during flights have a strong influence over guest satisfaction and, consequently, loyalty.
It should come as no surprise then that a great deal of thought has been given to flight attendant attire over the decades. The most recent move in the world of airborne fashion was made by United Airlines when they announced in November that they had hired world-famous designer, Cynthia Rowley, to create stylish new uniforms for all employees (look for them in 2011).
This move is a world-away from the first “stewardess” uniforms of the 1920s, which, as you’ll see, were more functional than fashionable. Here, we examine the evolution of sky-borne style from stodgy to sexy to sophisticated and look at the historical context in which each uniform was designed. Although both men and women both play a major role in airline stewardship, this gallery focuses primarily on the outfits worn by women as these are the uniforms that have changed the most drastically over time.
From Aviation Weather (1975)
I just purchased this book today at an antique shop on my lunch break!
Jane and Louise Wilson’s best shot: a photograph of an aircraft engine in a factory in Derby
It looks like it’s floating, but in fact this aircraft engine, which weighs five tonnes, is hanging from the ceiling. We saw it this year when we were scouting the Rolls Royce factory in Derby, a city that has long been a centre for manufacture and transport. In recent years, Derby has also become one of the main centres for Bosnian refugees. We wanted to animate their oral history using imagery that related to modes of displacement: planes, trains and transportation.
