Airline hostesses have always been the focus of glamour, particularly in the 50s and 60s.
Aircraft manufacturers, like Boeing, and airlines have always used them to highlight new aircraft and new passenger features.
The following images from the vaults of AirlineRatings.com showcase many of the great airlines of the past and a few that have survived through to the present day.
The Douglas DC-3 (below) in the 1930s brought an entirely new level of safety and comfort to flying.
The Douglas DC-4E followed the DC-3 but was too luxurious for airlines who wanted a leaner more economical model.
After WW11, commercial aviation was dominated by the Douglas DC-6 and DC-7 (below) and the Lockheed Constellation series.
Qantas was a big user of the Lockheed Constellation and launched the world’s first around the world service in 1957. The hostesses look more like matrons in their long white outfits.
Into the jet era, United Airlines offered a male-only flight between New York and Chicago on its French Caravelles.
