Since the 1960s, the open-toe sandal has been as much a part of Singapore Airlines' identity as the sarong kebaya itself — a quiet symbol of elegance carried at 35,000 feet. Beginning in January 2027, that symbol will give way to a closed-toe Pazzion wedge shoe, the product of 31 months of collaboration between the airline and a Singaporean footwear brand. The change is, at its heart, a story about the tension between image and lived experience — and a long-overdue reckoning with what it means to ask people to be both beautiful and safe.
Singapore Airlines Replaces Iconic Sandals With New Pazzion Wedges in 2027
A single pair of shoes for an entire shift, not two.
Mark
So Singapore Airlines is replacing sandals that have been part of their uniform since the 1960s. Why now? What triggered this?
Mimi
It wasn't a sudden decision. They did a formal review focused on safety and comfort—the practical realities of working on a plane for hours. The closed-toe design protects against spills and falling objects, and the new shoes let crew wear the same pair all flight instead of changing mid-shift.
Luke
But they've had closed-toe options since 2001. Why not just make those mandatory instead of designing entirely new shoes?
Mimi
That's fair. The hybrid system worked for 26 years. I think the difference is that this new design was built specifically for the job, with actual crew testing it on real flights. It's not just a safety shoe—it's meant to be comfortable enough to wear for a full shift.
Mark
How long did this take to develop?
Mimi
Thirty-one months. Pazzion, the manufacturer, did multiple rounds of fittings, gathered feedback, built prototypes, tested them in flight. It was collaborative.
Luke
That's a long timeline for a shoe. What made it take so long?
Mimi
Getting the fit right for hundreds of people with different foot shapes, making sure it could withstand the demands of the job, and ensuring it looked right with the uniform. The batik motif had to be integrated in a way that felt authentic to the brand.
Mark
The sandals have been iconic for so long. Is there any sense of loss here, or is this just practical evolution?
Mimi
Both, probably. The sarong kebaya and sandals are part of Singapore Airlines' visual identity globally. But uniforms evolve. Pierre Balmain redesigned the kebaya in 1968. This is just the next iteration.
Luke
When does the transition actually happen?
Mimi
January 2027. But the airline hasn't said when all crew will have switched over. It'll be gradual.
Mark
So for a while, you'll see both on flights?
Mimi
Yes. That's how these things usually work—old stock runs out, new stock comes in, and there's an overlap period.
Luke
One more thing: the 2001 change was partly prompted by a crash where crew lost their sandals. Is there any indication that's driving this decision too?
Mimi
The airline says the review began independently of that incident, though the crash certainly illustrated why closed-toe shoes matter. This feels more like a natural progression—better materials, better design, better understanding of what crew actually need.
Le Pouls
- A uniform element worn for over six decades is being retired, closing a chapter in one of aviation's most recognizable visual identities.
- The current two-shoe system — sandals for some phases, slingbacks for others — has long placed an awkward burden on cabin crew navigating the physical demands of flight.
- A 2000 crash in Taiwan, in which evacuating flight attendants lost their sandals amid debris, cast a long shadow over the open-toe design and quietly accelerated the case for change.
- Pazzion's 31-month development process — built on real fittings, in-flight testing, and crew feedback — produced a leather wedge engineered for a full shift without compromise.
- The new shoes carry SIA's batik motif and rank-specific colors, ensuring the brand's aesthetic continuity even as its most enduring footwear tradition is transformed.
Since the 1960s, the open-toe sandal has been as much a part of Singapore Airlines' identity as the sarong kebaya itself — a quiet symbol of elegance carried at 35,000 feet. Beginning in January 2027, that symbol will give way to a closed-toe Pazzion wedge shoe, the product of 31 months of collaboration between the airline and a Singaporean footwear brand. The change is, at its heart, a story about the tension between image and lived experience — and a long-overdue reckoning with what it means to ask people to be both beautiful and safe.
In January 2027, Singapore Airlines will retire the open-toe sandals that have accompanied its female cabin crew since the 1960s, replacing them with closed-toe wedge shoes made by Pazzion, a Singapore-based footwear brand. The decision ends a decades-long compromise: crew currently begin flights in sandals, then change into closed-toe slingbacks mid-service — a system the new wedges are designed to make unnecessary.
The Pazzion shoes are built from genuine leather with thicker lambskin insoles, a widened toe box, and a padded heel counter. They protect against the spills and falling objects that are ordinary hazards in a moving cabin, while offering enough cushioning to carry a crew member through a full shift. The batik motif and rank-indicating colors of SIA's signature aesthetic are preserved in the design.
The 31-month development was grounded in the experience of the people who would wear the shoes. Pazzion founder Tom Ng described an iterative process of fittings, crew feedback, prototyping, and in-flight testing before the final design was settled.
The change carries historical weight. The sarong kebaya uniform dates to 1963, and the original white sandals were designed by French couturier Pierre Balmain in 1968. The open-toe design survived decades of updates — but a fatal 2000 crash in Taiwan, during which evacuating flight attendants lost their sandals and walked barefoot through wreckage, sharpened the conversation about what cabin crew footwear should actually do.
SIA has not announced when the full transition will be complete, only that it begins in January 2027. What is already clear is that an iconic element of the Singapore Girl image is not disappearing — it is being remade to better serve the women who carry it.
In January 2027, Singapore Airlines will retire a piece of its visual identity that has endured for decades. The airline's female cabin crew will trade in their open-toe sandals—a fixture of the Singapore Girl uniform since the 1960s—for closed-toe wedge shoes designed and manufactured by Pazzion, a Singapore footwear brand. The shift culminates three years of collaborative development aimed at solving a practical problem: how to keep cabin crew safer and more comfortable during the physical demands of a flight.
The current uniform requires female flight attendants to change shoes mid-flight. They begin their duties in open-toe sandals, then switch to closed-toe slingbacks partway through. The new Pazzion wedges will eliminate that change. Made from genuine leather with thicker lambskin insoles, the shoes are engineered to cushion the foot through a full shift while protecting against spills and falling objects—hazards inherent to working in a confined, moving space. The design retains the visual signature of SIA's brand: the batik motif that has defined the airline's aesthetic, rendered in the carrier's signature colors, with variations indicating different cabin crew ranks.
Tom Ng, founder of Pazzion, described the 31-month development process as iterative and grounded in real conditions. The company conducted multiple rounds of fittings with female cabin crew, gathered their feedback, built prototypes, and tested them on actual flights before settling on the final design. The result, Ng explained, is a leather ballerina wedge with a widened toe box, padded heel counter, and cushioned insole—features born from the lived experience of the people who will wear them.
This change marks the latest chapter in the evolution of the Singapore Girl uniform, a visual symbol that has been refined and reimagined since its debut in 1963. The sarong kebaya, the uniform's centerpiece, originated with stewardesses at Malayan Airways, SIA's predecessor. French couturier Pierre Balmain redesigned it in 1968, shortly after Singapore Airlines became independent, and also created the original white sandals that accompanied it. Those sandals have been updated several times over the decades, but the open-toe design persisted until now.
The 2001 introduction of closed-toe slingbacks offers context for the current shift. That change followed a fatal accident in Taiwan in October 2000, when Singapore Airlines Flight 006 crashed during takeoff. Some flight attendants involved in the evacuation reported losing their sandals and having to walk barefoot through debris. Though SIA stated that its footwear review had begun two years before the crash, the accident underscored the safety implications of what cabin crew wear. For the next quarter-century, the airline maintained a hybrid system—sandals for certain phases, slingbacks for others—a compromise that the new wedges are designed to render unnecessary.
Singapore Airlines has not announced a timeline for the complete transition to the new shoes. The rollout will be gradual, beginning in January 2027, but the airline has not specified when all female cabin crew will have made the switch. What is clear is that an iconic element of the Singapore Girl image will change, not disappearing but transforming into something intended to better serve the people who wear it.
Citations marquantes
The iconic SIA batik fabric was a key source of inspiration. As an enduring element of the SIA uniform, we wanted to give batik a new expression within the shoe, pairing it with genuine calf leather in SIA's signature colourways.— Tom Ng, Pazzion founder
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