Air Force to test new maternity uniform
The Air Force Uniform Office is asking for for pregnant service members at Wright-patterson Air Force Base to try out the new Maternity Flight Duty Uniform in fit-and-wear tests in January.
The tests will consist of 25 volunteers who will be measured and fit into the new uniform, the office said in a release Wednesday.
“Once the participants are sized in their correct uniform, they will wear that uniform for four weeks and provide feedback on how it performed during their normal duty day,” the office said in a release.
In September last year, the Air Force updated its policy to reduce barriers on pregnant aviators who perform flight duties and have uncomplicated pregnancies.
This update allows the continuation of flight duties during pregnancy, said the office, part of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, which is based at Wright-patterson.
“This effort is important,” 1st Lt Avery Thomson, lead program manager for maternity development efforts in the AFUO, said in the release. “Current aircrew members are modifying their flight duty uniforms, at a significant personal financial cost, or they are borrowing bigger uniforms from their husbands, which creates a safety of flight issue. The Maternity Flight Duty Uniform will help remove a barrier for approximately 400 pregnant Airmen each year.”
The Army Uniform Board is also considering updating the service’s 40year-old smock maternity uniform, and the Marine Corps said last year that it is considering new maternity shirts.