Women's Pilot and Aviator Costumes: Build the Look by Era

A great women's pilot costume picks one era of flying and adds the few accessories that make it read: a fitted green flight suit and aviator sunglasses for the 80s fighter pilot, a cap, tie, and striped epaulettes for the airline captain, or a flight cap, goggles, and a long white scarf for the vintage aviator. Our Womens 80s Fighter Pilot Costume packs the flight suit, the sunglasses, and a dog tag necklace. Bring your own boots.

Between April 22 and October 18, 2026, about 18% of the U.S. Google impressions our site earned on pilot, aviator, and flight-suit searches came from a search naming women or girls. So we built every look here for her first. Among U.S. pilots, women held 5.5% of active airline transport pilot certificates at the end of 2025, per the FAA's civil airmen statistics. Shop the adult sets in our uniform costumes range, or see our career costumes guide for other jobs and our best Halloween costumes for no uniform at all.

Which pilot look should you pick?

Pick the pilot look by the era you want people to recognize: each era has its own base piece and a short accessory list. The five looks, oldest to newest:

What does a vintage aviator costume need?

A vintage aviator costume needs three pieces from the open-cockpit era: a close-fitting flight cap or helmet, goggles, and a long white scarf. None of it was for show. The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force says the silk scarf protected the pilot's neck from chafing, and a paper by NASA Johnson Space Center scientists says castor oil engine lubricant made open-cockpit pilots wear goggles. The first U.S. woman to earn a pilot's license did it in 1911, according to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.

The brown flight cap, goggles attached

Our Pilot Hat, Goggles and Scarf Set comes as one set: a brown faux-leather-look flight cap with a fleece-style lining, a chin strap, and round goggles attached, with tinted lens panels, plus a lightweight woven scarf. One size, for a head of about 22 to 23 inches.

The vinyl helmet, goggles, and scarf

Our Adult Aviator Pilot Helmet, Goggles and Scarf Set is a set of three: a vinyl aviator helmet, goggles, and a white scarf. The helmet has an adjustable chin strap and fits heads up to about 60 cm (23.6 inches); ages 14 and up.

The two vintage sets side by side:

Is there a vintage pilot costume for girls?

Yes: our Girls Historic Aviator Costume is the vintage look in one pack, boots aside, for ages 7 to 14. Give her a true story too: in 1929, the U.S. had so few women pilots, 117 in all, that every one of them could be invited to a single meeting, and the club they formed, The Ninety-Nines, took its name from its 99 charter members. More kids' sets are in our kids uniform costumes range.

The young aviator

The pack holds five pieces: a brown faux leather jacket with an embroidered flight badge, balloon-style pilot pants, a white scarf, an aviator hat, and toy aviator goggles. Medium fits 7 to 9 years, Large 10 to 12, XL 12 to 14. Boots aren't in the pack; her own brown pair finishes it.

All of our kids' products are safety tested by accredited labs.

What makes an 80s fighter pilot costume?

An 80s fighter pilot costume comes together with three pieces: a fitted green flight suit, aviator sunglasses, and dog tags. The real suit behind it, the CWU-27/P, is standard issue for aircrews in all branches of the U.S. military; the Smithsonian's Navy example is a sage green aramid flying suit that zips down the front. Smithsonian Air & Space magazine says the first aviator sunglasses were designed to protect a pilot's eyes in the thin air at high altitudes. The Army first made dog tags compulsory with a December 1906 general order requiring ID tags, according to the Department of Defense.

The flight suit, for her

Our Womens 80s Fighter Pilot Costume packs three pieces: a green khaki high-stretch pilot bodysuit, silver-framed aviator sunglasses, and a metal-look dog tag necklace. At 87% polyester and 13% elastane, it moves when you dance. Add boots or heels; black ankle boots stay closest to the flight line.

Outdoors, a brown leather or bomber jacket over the suit keeps you warm and still reads as pilot. More from the decade is in our 1980s costumes range.

How do you make a women's airline captain costume?

You make a women's airline captain costume from your own white shirt and a dark skirt or pants, plus our Adult Pilot Costume Accessory Set. Rank lives in the stripes: at most airlines a captain wears four, a first officer three, and a second officer or flight engineer two, according to FLYING magazine.

The captain kit, over your own clothes

Six pieces: a pilot hat, a clip-on tie, aviator style sunglasses, a badge emblem, shoulder epaulettes, and gloves. One hat size, about 22 to 23 inches round; the tie clips to your collar, so there's no knot.

The build, in order:

1. Put on a white collared shirt and a navy or black skirt or pants.
2. Clip the tie to the collar.
3. Add the epaulettes at the shoulders and place the badge on the left chest.
4. Finish with the cap, the gloves, and the sunglasses.

How is a flight attendant costume different from a pilot costume?

A flight attendant costume is a skirt suit with a hat and gloves; a pilot costume is a cap, a tie, and stripes. Different pieces, same airline, so the two read as a pair at a glance.

The flight attendant, in blue

Our Women's Blue Cabin Crew Costume packs a blue skirt and a jacket with a shirt insert, a hat, and gloves, in 100% polyester. Sizing follows the UK dress scale, Small (UK 8-10) to XX-Large (UK 24-26), five steps in all; measure against the product page chart, and between two, take the larger.

Which pilot costumes work for couples and groups?

Pilot costumes pair up when you pick different eras or different jobs, because the contrast tells people it's a theme. Four pairings:

• Then and now: one of you in the 80s flight suit, the other in the brown flight cap, goggles, and scarf over their own leather jacket.
• Captain and crew: the captain kit with the blue flight attendant suit, or the flight attendant with our Men's Black Pilot Captain Costume for a full uniform.
• Matching flight suits: her flight suit with our Men's 80s Aviator Flight Suit Costume, sunglasses on.
• Mom and daughter: mom in either vintage set, her daughter in the Girls Historic Aviator Costume.

For a whole crew, one person takes the captain kit and the rest go as flight attendants and flight-suit pilots. Our best couples Halloween costumes and Halloween costumes for groups guides have more themes.

How do our pilot costumes size and wash?

Our women's pilot costumes size by UK clothing or dress size, the girls' set by age, and the accessory sets by head measurement, one size each. Each of the three costume pages has its own size guide, and across the brand we run 500,000+ quality checks a year:

• Womens 80s Fighter Pilot Costume: Extra Small to XL. Hand wash in cool water, air dry flat, and store the sunglasses and dog tags separately.
• Women's Blue Cabin Crew Costume: Small (UK 8-10) to XX-Large (UK 24-26). Hand wash in cool water, air dry flat.
• Girls Historic Aviator Costume: ages 7 to 14 in three sizes. Hand wash on its own, air dry flat.
• The three accessory sets: one adult size each. Spot clean only; wipe with a damp or soft cloth.

Frequently asked questions