Virgin America x Banana Republic = the Flyest Flight Attendants

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Banana Republic first created flight attendant uniforms for Virgin Americain 2008, and it was the beginning of an aesthetically pleasing relationship. For Virgin America's fifth anniversary in 2012, the airline once again enlisted BR to design new uniforms with equal parts style and function.

This was no ordinary design process. The 18-month brainstorm process led up to a "Design Challenge" in which Banana Republic designers competed to create the uniform that flight attendants would wear. Designers were divided into five teams of six, and each consulted with flight attendants and pilots to find out everything they wanted in a uniform. They had just a day and a half to come up with their designs. Each then gave a 20-minute presentation to a panel of three judges. Check out the video below to see how it all went down.

The uniforms debuted on the company's 2,000 in-flight employees in August, and you'd be hard-pressed to find better-dressed, less-wrinkled airline workers.

"In creating the uniform designs for Virgin America, we wanted to respect the heritage of in–flight uniform design while injecting a modern twist that's both functional and fashionable," said Banana Republic Creative Director and Executive Vice President Simon Kneen in a statement. "We referenced the time when onboard style and sophistication was of utmost importance and designed a modern interpretation that incorporates aviation details and celebrates Virgin America's signature style."

The collection includes the requisite tops bottoms and dresses, plus some pretty sweet trenches for men and women, as well as bags and sunglasses that we'd be psyched to wear, uniform or not. Check out the gallery for the full collection.
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