Delta Air Lines is rethinking some of its new uniform designs for flight attendants, allegedly over fears that the dresses could impede an emergency evacuation.
In March, the Atlanta-based carrier revealed that it has been secretly working on a new uniform collection in partnership with iconic American brand Gap Inc. since 2022.
Delta has unveiled a sneak peek at some of the prototype uniforms with large-scale wearer tests, which are expected to get underway later this year before the final designs are approved.
The initial prototypes, however, received a lukewarm response when they were first revealed earlier this year and now the airline has already slashed three flight attendant dress options from the collection.
All three of the discontinued dresses included layers of excess fabric, including a flare dress, a drape dress and an asymmetrical dress with layers of pleats.
A photo of initial test wearers showing off the bright red dresses went viral, with online commentators comparing them to the utilitarian outfits worn by the main characters in HBO’s award-winning show The Handmaid’s Tale.
It’s understood that Delta decided to cut the dresses from the collection because the excess fabric could have impeded flight attendants during an emergency evacuation, although the airline is yet to confirm the reason publicly.
However, three other dress options, including a coat dress, a scarf dress, and a V-neck dress, are still under consideration.
The new uniform will embrace Delta’s traditional color palette with rich reds and dark blues featured throughout the collection. Designers are also incorporating Delta’s widget logo in various ways across different uniform items.
Last year, Delta officially dropped it’s Passport Plum’ uniform after the airline faced multiple lawsuits from the Zac Posen era uniforms over accusations that toxic chemicals were used in the manufacturing process of the garments.
Delta’s SVP of customer experience design Ranjan Goswami, says the airline won’t rush the design and rollout of the new uniform in a bid to avoid the kind of problems the carrier faced with the Zac Posen uniforms.
