British Airways Unveils its First New Uniform in Nearly 20 Years and Makes History With the First Ever Cabin Crew Jumpsuit

British Airways has unveiled a brand new uniform collection for the first time in nearly 20 years, and the Heathrow-based airline has made history by unveiling the first-ever cabin crew jumpsuit as part of the designs.

Designed by the British and Ghanaian changemaker Ozwald Boateng, the uniform features a tailored three-piece suit in regular and slim fit options for men, while female flight attendants will also get to choose between skirt, pant and dress options.

The long-awaited new uniform has been repeatedly delayed and was originally meant to be released to the world in 2019 until a damaging, and costly strike by pilots hit BA’s public reputation and forced the airline to tighten its belt.

British Airways and the famed Savile Row designer Ozwald Boateng hoped to have the opportunity to finally launch the new look in threads in early 2020, but those plans had to be quickly shelved when the pandemic decimated the aviation industry.

Work has, however, continued in the background over the last three years and British Airways says around 1,500 employees helped Boateng finesse the designs across 50 workshops.

The end result created a bespoke ‘airwave’ pattern features across the entire uniform collection, including jackets, t-shirts, buttons and ties. British Airways says the design is “inspired by the movement of air over an aircraft wing”.

Over the last six months, BA has been conducting secretive wearer trials on undercover cargo flights across Europe. Engineers have also been secretly trialling the uniform while undercover at Manchester and Cotswold Airports.

“Designing this uniform was a vast and painstaking undertaking and it went far beyond clothes,” commented Boateng on Friday. “It was about creating an energetic shift internally. One of my main objectives was to create something that spoke to, and for, the airline’s colleagues,” he continued.

“Although the airline has a strong heritage, it was imperative to support in creating a fresh narrative of change and transcendence, while remaining timeliness,” Boateng added.

Engineering teams, as well as ground options teams, will start to wear the new uniform in the new few months, while BA says cabin crew, pilots and airport agents will have a single switchover date at some point in Summer 2023.

Staffers will be told to hand in their old uniforms so that they can be donated to charity or recycled to create toys, and tablet holders.