Although illustrations for the designs haven’t been revealed yet, United Airlines recently announced that its flight crews would be wearing new uniforms by the end of 2010.

They'll be created by famed clothing designer Cynthia Rowley, who said she plans to design the uniforms for comfort and utility, as well as for contemporary style. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending to your tastes, the new uniforms will not be anything like the miniskirts, go-go boots and hot pants flight attendants wore in the early 1970s.

How many of we who are vintage frequent flyers remember the aircrew uniforms of the 1930s? The pilots looked then just about the way they appear today, with sort of military suits, brass buttons and Air Force style caps.

However, the women flight attendants, called stewardesses then, had to have registered nurse degrees, and could not be married. In fact, as the old photo indicates, their original uniforms were hospital white frocks and nurses’ caps. On some airlines, stewardesses had mandatory “retirement” ages of 30.

Does anyone remember who did the inflight coffee, tea and snack duties on the earliest commercial flights in the late 1920s, before the introduction of those registered nurse stewardesses? They were young guys with the nautical title of cabin boys.