KUALA LUMPUR, June 18 — When Faridah Abdul Rahman was a Form Six student, the taxi she was in stopped at a traffic light and as she looked over, a beautifully dressed Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight attendant caught her eye.
In that brief moment, she instantly knew she wanted to be an air hostess.
“She just looked at me fleetingly with the faintest smile and that was it — I didn’t want to do anything else,” said the former flight attendant who worked with the airline for 30 years.
“I abandoned whatever dreams I had. I was just attracted to the uniform.”
Such is the sartorial significance of a national carrier’s uniform that evokes the full spectrum of human emotions.
For the likes of former flight attendants like Faridah, 59, and her three close friends — Rogayah Yusof Khan, 58, Nazimah Ali, 59, and Noraini Yaacob, 59 — the iconic sarong kebaya harks back to the golden age of air travel, long before it became as accessible (or stressful even) as today.
Others have a less joyful association, given the loss of two planes and an on-going restructuring that followed suit, which included a massive retrenchment exercise.
Most recently, as part of the airline’s rebranding, Singapore-born designer and retailer Datuk Seri Farah Khan was named as the creative force behind the national carrier’s new uniform designs which are slated for a year end unveiling.
Back in 1978 — the year all four of them joined the airline — junior stewardesses wore a batik skirt and kebaya blouse with red and blue details. Juniors serving in East Malaysia had a skirt suit and matching hat, a nod to the country’s British past, different to the sarong kebaya we have come to know and love today.
The uniform today, which is in its 30th year, is a turquoise batik print featuring Sarawakian motifs with purple and pink flowers. It was first introduced in 1986, with yellow flowers but went through minor colour enhancements in 1991.
Prior to that, there was a green and brown kebaya, which replaced its solid blue and red-blue batik predecessor, and each stewardess was given six pieces of the uniform.
“The kebaya didn’t really go through massive changes. Although the colours changed, its essence was always there,” said Faridah, whose favourite design is the original blue sarong and reddish-blue top.
Now a trainer and consultant, she only got to wear the uniform she first fell in love with three months after she joined, when she was promoted to a bigger fleet.
It is also a favourite with Nazimah, Rogayah and Noraini.
Noraini, who left MAS in the 90s said: “There’s something very elegant about it, it commands people to look at you.”
Nazimah said she not only loved the cinched waist of the kebaya which made her look tall and slim but how beautiful she felt whenever she wore it.
“When people talk about stewardesses, they are meant to be beautiful so you feel beautiful in the uniform,” said the 58-year-old, who became a trainer at the MAS academy together with Faridah.
Rogayah, a passenger on Faridah’s flight on board the now obsolete Fokker F27 Friendship, was always a fan of the uniform and after volunteering on Sabah Air, she applied for a MAS job and was accepted.
“Even as a passenger she would tell me, ‘I love your uniform, I want to join the airline!’” Faridah recalled.
While there was no shortage of fond memories from their flying days, the four ladies said donning the MAS uniform, in any version, made them feel like cultural ambassadors of Malaysia.
“I was proud to wear something that reflects the country’s culture,” Rogayah said.
“Wherever you go people always turn to look at you,” said the livewire of the quartet, who brought along her old brown and green kebaya sets.
Contrary to popular belief, all four said the uniforms were comfortable, and safe too.
“When people design uniforms, they also have to take into account the safety aspects. For example, during ditching time, you just have to lift up your skirt and tie it up so you are mobile,” said former chief stewardess Rogayah.
Having gone through various phases of the uniform and the airline itself, the four former cabin crew members wore the changes gracefully.
But bidding farewell to yet another sarong kebaya and ushering in the new and unknown was not without mixed feelings.
Noraini for one, opposes the idea, saying it was not the right time to redesign the uniform.
“Some might feel this is not the right time or priority. But for me, once everything is settled, this is the way to go — you want to start afresh, everything must be new. MAS can put aside everything it has gone through and carve a new future,” said Faridah.
She said the uniform change was timely but it was important to address issues that were “causing people a lot of heartbreak”.
Nazimah and Rogayah both believe redesigning the uniform is an important part of the airline’s rebranding strategy, despite its bittersweet aftertaste.
Rogayah said she was in favour of change so long as the new design was Malaysia at heart.
“I’m looking forward to see it. It might be a good start for the airline,” Nazimah said.
