Virgin inspired-Aeroflot sexing up airline crew

London, July 30 (ANI): Russian airline Aeroflot is in for a big image makeover -they are sexing up their staff on the lines of the crew of Virgin Atlantic.

Infamous for rusting Soviet planes, appalling service, inedible food and rude aircraft crew, the airline yesterday announced plans to renew its fleet, improve its service and generally turn over a new leaf.

The airline bosses even made a promise to pamper passengers with a new generation of stewardesses who would be easier on the eye.

The new Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Savelyev said all new stewardesses would be "very striking, very eye-catching girls", who would not exceed Russian size 48 - roughly a British size 12.

In addition, the airline announced a change in its previous blue-and-orange uniforms.

"Psychologists have told us that the current colour evokes revulsion in passengers. We've looked at the uniforms of other major carriers. My son sent me a wonderful video clip of Virgin Atlantic - all of their stewardesses are in bright red uniforms and look like professional models," The Independent quoted Savelyev as telling the newspaper Vedomosti.

A competition has been held among 40 design agencies to decide on a new uniform.

As part of the retraining, a number of Aeroflot hostesses have been sent to Singapore to receive training from Singapore Airlines.

"The passenger is always right! We have fired a lot of stewardesses for being rude to passengers," said Savelyev.

The airline also plans to drop almost all its Russian-made aircraft, including 26 Tupolev 154 jets, which are mostly used on routes within Russia and to non-European destinations.

And Aeroflot has insisted that it is changing Tupolevs for Boeings and Airbuses not because of safety concerns, but because the Russian planes are less fuel-efficient. (ANI)