American to put employees in new uniforms

American Airlines said Friday that fashion designers Ken Kaufman and Isaac Franco will design “new, more modern uniforms.” (AP)

First American Airlines announced it was redesigning its planes.  Now the carrier is planning its first complete uniform overhaul in more than 20 years.

The airline said Friday that it hired fashion designers Ken Kaufman and Isaac Franco --who dress celebrities like Jennifer Lopez and Taylor Swift -- to create uniforms for pilots, flight attendants and customer-service agents.

"It's exciting to think that we can put a KaufmanFranco stamp on such an important American icon," Kaufman said in a release. "We plan to mix the elegance of American's rich fashion heritage and incredible style with today's cutting-edge technology. It's about creating a wardrobe inspired by our fashion runway for American's runway."

While there's no news yet on what the redesigned uniforms will look like, although words like "functional" and "fashionable" were mentioned.

The makeover will take 18 months. American didn't say how much it will cost.

Last week American unveiled a new logo and paint scheme for its aircraft. American is trying to change the image of the company, which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2011. It's considering whether to merge with US Airways or remain on its own.