LONDON — Ozwald Boateng has given latest intending to runway design with the debut of his first clothes and niknaks collection for British Airways staff.

The Savile Row tailor has created the primary latest uniforms for in-flight and ground staff in nearly 20 years. The last designer to decorate the staff was Julien Macdonald.

The uniforms, which have been constructed from bespoke, easy-care fabrics, have been an extended time coming. Boateng began working on them in 2018, but bumped into delays in the course of the pandemic when the airline grounded its fleet and temporarily suspended staff.

Over the past 4 years, he’s treated the job like a high-security mission, shadowing BA staff of their various roles; conducting “secret trials on the air and ground,” and polling greater than 1,500 employees about fit and luxury, in keeping with BA.    

Sean Doyle, British Airways’ chairman and chief executive officer, said the uniforms represent the brand and “the best possible of recent Britain, helping us deliver an incredible British original service for our customers.”

The gathering encompasses a tailored, three-piece suit for men with regular and slim-fit trousers, while there are dress, skirt and trouser options for ladies.

Women may also wear a jumpsuit as a part of their uniform, which BA described as “an airline first.” Boateng has also created tunic and hijab options for female staff.

The designer has created a pattern inspired by the movement of air over a metal wing. It flutters across your complete collection, appearing on jackets, T-shirts, buttons and ties.

The jacquard fabric on the tailored clothing encompasses a variation of the airline’s signature blue and red, ribbon-like speedmarque.

Prototypes were tested on members of the cabin and flight crew during cargo flights across Europe, while engineers “secretly” trialed their latest uniforms out of the general public eye at Manchester and Cotswold Airports.

Lots of the outdoor garments were tested under deluge showers and in freezers at minus-18 degrees Celsius, or minus-0.4 degrees Fahrenheit, to make sure they were water-resistant, and fit for extreme weather.

Greater than 30,000 people will don the brand new uniforms starting within the spring.

Boateng described the job as a “vast and painstaking undertaking, and it went far beyond clothes. It was about creating an lively shift internally.

“Considered one of my foremost objectives was to create something that spoke to, and for, the airline’s colleagues,” Boateng said, adding that he desired to design “something that inspired and empowered them, encouraged them to conduct their roles with pride and, most significantly, to be sure that they felt seen and heard.”

BA said greater than 90 percent of the clothes have been produced using sustainable fabrics from blends of recycled polyester and that the airline is barely working with manufacturers which are members of the Higher Cotton Initiative. 

BA said old Julien Macdonald uniforms shall be donated to the airline’s museum or to charity or shall be recycled to create toys and other items.

Boateng’s BA debut comes almost a 12 months after his first London show in greater than a decade.

Last February, the tailor staged an event at London’s Savoy Theatre celebrating creativity within the British Black community, with musical performances, poetry readings and a runway show with 100 looks worn by a solid that included Idris Elba, Dizzee Rascal, Goldie, Pa Salieu, Rapman and Unknown T.

Throughout the event Boateng, who served as creative director of Givenchy Homme between 2004 and 2007, showed dresses, kimonos, velvet tuxedos, wide-legged trousers, tailored jackets and outerwear in his signature prints, inspired by Kente fabric and Adinkra symbols from Africa.