Sports brand Nike has updated its classic Air Force 1 high-top shoes, using its innovative Flyknit material to reduce the weight of the shoe by half (+ slideshow).
Launching today, the Nike Air Force 1 Ultra Flyknit is designed as a more lightweight, comfortable and longer-lasting version of one of the brand's most iconic and popular trainers.
"Air Force 1 has been one of our biggest shoes in the history of the company," Nike design director Jonathan Jonson Griffin told Dezeen. "The Air Force 1 is one of the only shoes that can go from Harajuku to Silicon Valley. It can be very aspirational but very approachable at the same time."

The use of Flyknit ? made from engineered yarns and knitted like a sock ? allows the upper to be created as a single piece. Paired with an injected-foam sole, the shoe is 50 per cent lighter than the original leather and rubber version.

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"This is the lightest Air Force 1 we've ever designed," said Jonson Griffin.
The first Air Force 1 was designed by Nike's Bruce Kilgore and produced in 1982, but discontinued the following year. It was re-released in 1986 with the modern italic Nike logo and "swoosh" tick on the back of the shoe, and the design has not changed much since.

The most popular model is the high-top "white on white", featuring a thick rubber sole, a prominent toe and a velcro ...