Airline Swaps Out Skirts And Heels For Trousers And Sneakers In New Uniforms

Air travel has changed in innumerable ways over the decades, but one thing that’s remained virtually unchanged is the style of uniform worn by flight attendants.

Things may be changing, though, if one airline’s recent change to its uniform policy is any indication.

Picture a female flight attendant

Even though flight attendants work long hours with strenuous physical activity, the uniforms typically worn by women are anything but practical: blazers, tight pencil skirts and high heels. It’s the kind of outfit that can’t be comfy if you’re working on a long-haul flight.

One airline is shaking things up

It’s likely not a carrier you’ve heard of, unless you’re familiar with Eastern European budget airlines. But SkyUp Airlines, based out of Ukraine, has unveiled a sweeping change that could be the start of a larger trend.

Here’s the new uniform

The view of the top half of the uniform is striking, but only because it features the airline’s signature bright shade of orange. Otherwise, though, it looks like a fairly typical flight attendant blazer like you’d see on most airlines.

Here’s the full reveal

The most obvious change here is pants. Yes, pants: the most practical lower body garment that can be worn in public.

So yeah, the uniform swaps out pencil skirts for pants. But it also replaced heels with something far more comfortable: sneakers.

It’s a stylish, practical look

Pants are far more comfortable than skirts over a long shift. And those bright white Nike Air Max 720 sneakers are definitely going to be easier on flight attendants’ feet than the traditional high heels.

The flight attendants are stoked for the change

“Twelve hours on your feet, flying from Kyiv to Zanzibar and back,” is how flight attendant Daria Solomennaya described a typical shift. “If you wear high heels, you are hardly able to walk afterwards.”

It’s about time uniforms got a shake-up

While female flight attendants have worn sexualized uniforms for decades, it’s far from practical.

“A flight attendant’s work is not that romantic. It’s hard,” SkyUp’s head of marketing Marianna Grygorash told the BBC. “We realized that our female flight attendants didn’t want to be seen as ‘sexualized and playful’.”

Will other carriers follow suit? Only time will tell

Honestly, it seems inevitable. Given the long hours they work, flight attendants should be allowed to go to work in sweatpants and hoodies.

Let us know what you think of SkyUp’s new uniforms in the comments below!