Y-3 has been at the forefront of technical and innovative menswear since it launched in 2003. For more than a decade the brand has pushed how we looked to the future and how people wear clothing. It's always felt a bit like it was pulled out of a space station and thrown onto the runway. Well, the brand just went further into the final frontier than it ever has. In partnership with Virgin Galactic—the first-ever commercial spaceline, and brainchild of mad man Richard Branson, that wants to take regular joes to space—Y-3 debuted its prototypes for a pilot flight-suit and flight boots made for the astronauts of the future.
While the pieces are intended for truly functional uses, they're also pretty incredible from a fashion point of view. The suit is designed to support the pilot's seating position and is still being developed through tests and trials with Virgin Galactic's actual pilots. Still, with the black-on-black color, tonal stripes down the zipper in the front, paneling at the underarm and elbows, Velcro at the cuffs and zippered pockets all around, it's clear that function and fashion are married quite well. The boots are certified stompers, too, with a rugged outsole, while still lightweight and flexible. I just know that if I were a passenger on the eventual maiden voyage, I'd want to be wearing exactly what the pilots were—this space suit.
It's highly unlikely that this gear will be available to the general public, as much as we want it to be. But maybe this can provide further motivation for you to follow those childhood dreams and actually become an astronaut. Take a look at some photos below and watch the clip above for a further breakdown.
