Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Oct 06, 2025

Airport Style, We’ve Missed You

Airport Style, We’ve Missed You

A new book chronicles decades of celebrities at the airport, from Rihanna to the Supremes.

Once upon a time, air travel was a glamorous affair. Men wore suits, women wore heels, and you could enjoy a nice lobster tail at 30,000 feet. Now of course, plane travel is about maximizing your comfort while sitting in a small box for an extended period of time, snacking on a mini bag of pretzels. But still, the dream of traveling in style remains. And given that most of us have now been grounded for over a year, the thought of dressing up and jetting off is all the more alluring.

There’s one subset of the population that has always had incentive to pay attention to what they look like at an airport, and that’s celebrities. Whether they’re pulling a Lady Gaga and wearing a smart dress and heels or joining the masses in onesie pajamas à la Miley Cyrus, stars are not just like us when it comes to air travel.

A new book from legendary Rolling Stone photo editor and creative director Jodi Peckman, Come Fly With Me: Flying in Style, chronicles the best in airport fashion from the past 60 years. Over 144 pages, Peckman showcases exemplary fashion from each decade, from Yoko Ono’s white go-go boots to Kim Kardashian’s Juicy Couture. “They just all happen to be in an airport; I never went seeking airport images,” Peckman told me over the phone. “In fact, I hate traveling and I’m really afraid of flying so it’s funny that I have a book with airport images. I was always attracted to the way these people walk through the airport. Most of the time, they know they’re being photographed and I find it really interesting to see how people present themselves to the camera in that snap second.”

Some ham it up for the paparazzi, or dress for the occasion. Indeed, in the older photos, celebrities seem more amenable to being photographed, whether it’s posed for a pool of photographers or otherwise. The Supremes arrive in London in 1964 in furs, kitten heels, and skirt suits. Dolly Parton kicks her leg up for the camera in a flared pantsuit (an energy rarely seen at the airport). In some instances, like Joan Collins next to a trolley of Louis Vuitton trunks and Naomi Campbell on the tarmac with three Louis Vuitton bags and tiny glasses, it is also just truly aspirational imagery, perfectly capturing celebrity against an organic backdrop. The trip from check-in to TSA is their catwalk. And it could be yours too!

Still, there are those who prefer to fly under the radar. The image that really captured Peckman’s attention was a 2014 shot of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen moving through LAX. They’re two twins in black with matching messy buns, flurrying through the airport and trying to avoid the camera. You don’t fully see their faces, but you understand exactly who they are. “That picture, which is my favorite in the book, is so wonderful because they’re so joined in the photo,” Peckman says. “It almost looks like a fashion photo.”

Ultimately, what makes airport style so good is the unexpected nature of it. It’s not common to see celebrities, fur coats, or Louis Vuitton trunks at the airport anymore. Flip through Come Fly With Me and you’ll find plenty new imagery to throw on the mood board for that long-awaited summer vacation. You may even be inspired to wear heels on your next flight.



Naomi Campbell, Paris Le-Bourget, 1998



The Supremes, London Heathrow, 1965



Lady Gaga, Los Angeles International, 2015



Whitney Houston, Los Angeles International, 1993



Joan Collins, London Heathrow, 1989



Elton John, London Heathrow, 1982



Come Fly with Me: Flying in Style

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
×