Well, we’re never going to be part of the US Air Force as a couple of sunglasses obsessive Brits, but that doesn’t stop us from admiring the rich history that the decade busting trendster style of Aviator sunglasses comes from.

It’s been nearly 70 years that fashion has fondly loved the aviator style, and one that has become synonymous with sunglasses super-brand Ray-Ban after taking a lead in inventing the form that would become much imitated over the next century.

First invented for military use in 1929 for American pilots and using the first-of-a-kind lens technologies that allowed for sun protection and a clear view, it wasn’t until a particularly charismatic commander chap called Douglas MacArthur adopted using them as an integral part of his image (with his pipe too, of course!) that the style started to take on any kind of significance in the public eye.

Not long after celebrities and various high-profile personalities took up the sunglasses as accessories of their own, before going in to mass production in 1937 and spreading the style right across the States.

Ray-Ban registered their trademark round about this time, and subsequently sealed the deal on securing their status as the king of cool.

The next Ray-Ban revolution for aviators took hold of kids, teens and adults during the days of disco as the style flourished, despite the anti-military sentiment of the Seventies and Eighties and the sunglasses’ origins.

This life-long love affair with aviators is still ongoing, and we hope will continue to do so for many generations to come; thanks to the versatility of the original design and the thousands of designer sunglasses made in their image.