Star Trek: Every Starfleet Uniform Ranked From WORST To BEST

4. Flag Officer Variations - Mid 2270s

Star Trek: The Motion Picture shows Admiral Kirk in several uniform variants. The first, and the one that inspired the Flag Officer uniforms in Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness, is the collared white and grey two-piece uniform. 

This bears epaulets on the shoulders, a perscan device over the abdomen, a Delta on the left breast, and rank insignia on the sleeve cuffs. The second variant is a simple, short-sleeved white tunic, seen when Kirk meets Spock and McCoy in the Recreation deck. After this, Kirk slips into a standard, light-blue service uniform.

Costume designer Robert Fletcher said, in the February 1980 issue of Fantastic Films, that the various uniforms were inspired by the then-contempoary Navy uniforms, in that there were several variants available there too.