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oneElastic waistband, fleece lining, roomy silhouette… once you’ve got these sweatpants on, it’s hard to get out. The first is wearing them around the house. Then you can buy them in the supermarket. Suddenly, you can’t remember the last time you wore something with buttons. It’s worth noting that during the pandemic, our heels, handbags, and blazers have all been firmly discontinued in favor of pajamas, tracksuits, and leggings. Since lockdown was lifted, office wear has still not returned to its pre-Covid heights. The same goes for airport fashion, with terminal attire ranging from stylish athleisure to barely-there pajamas.
Last month, one man decided enough was enough. “Things are no longer the way they used to be,” declares U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean P. Duffy In a video ad for a new campaign requiring airspace etiquette. “Let’s restore civility and decorum,” he preached to viewers in a montage of social media videos that showed passengers with bare feet on their seats, fights on planes and other unruly behavior. “Ask yourself, are you helping a pregnant woman put her bag into the overhead bin? Are you dressing respectfully?” he asked. Well, come on, you lycra-wearing villain, huh? Daffy demands to know!
“Whether it’s a pair of jeans and a decent shirt,” Duffy continued, “I would encourage people to dress a little better, and that might encourage us to behave a little better. We try not to wear slippers and pajamas when we go to the airport.”
Predictably, so far, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation’s initiative has had the exact opposite effect than its original intention. Instead of encouraging flyers to return the so-called golden age of air travel In the 1950s and 1960s, passengers boarded planes wearing pillbox hats, skirt suits or slim single-breasted blazers, while Americans retaliated by heading to the airport in tracksuits and pajamas. “Okay, now I have to wear my pajamas to the airport!” one woman wrote on TikTok as she prepared her workout clothes.
Where America goes, the rest of the world will follow, which means the UK may soon be advising airport civilisation, too. While the US FAA has reported nearly 14,000 “unruly passenger incidents” over the past four years, the UK Civil Aviation Authority said it receives “significant amounts of distressing correspondence” every 12 months from passengers who have witnessed “drunk and disruptive behavior in flight” (also known as “drunk and disruptive behavior in flight”).empty rage”. It seems we have a problem. But can clothes really solve the problem?
“People don’t value air travel and don’t see it as an occasion,” says fashion psychologist Dr. Dion Terrelonge. “It becomes so accessible that it loses what makes it special. Like if someone brought you a diamond every day, it wouldn’t be that special anymore and the novelty would wear off. As humans, we have a huge response to novelty,” she added. “The fact that you can now travel to the continent for less than a new pair of boots tells you a lot. Your weekly shopping may cost more than going to the Costa del Sol.” At the time of writing, there are flights to Malaga for £23 – there and Back away.
last year, Ryanair According to the British Airline Association, the airline operates an average of 3,044 flights a day and is the most active airline, followed by EasyJet Eurocontrol Performance Review. In the golden age of air travel, before the launch of low-cost airlines in 1970, fewer than 500,000 flights operated a year, of which only 195,000 units in operation throughout 1950. Perhaps someone needs to remind politicians that if they want air travel to become rare, it is crucial that air travel must be rare in the first place—an argument that serves both good manners and the planet.
“We dress up for special occasions—birthdays, parties, even our Christmas work party that only happens once a year,” Trelongo explains. “We know that rarity increases the perceived value of something. Because of the convenience and price of flying (i.e. the perceived value of an outing), it ceases to be an occasion. People treat flights like flying instructors.” Indeed, there’s nothing stylish about being dazzled by the neon orange of an easyJet A320.
Since the 1950s and 1960s, airplane legroom has been reduced, the food has become less refined, there is no proper beverage service, and the interiors are terrible. You don’t wear black tie and go to Burger King. Likewise, no one wears a suit (or even jeans) on a Ryanair flight. As humans, if we’re treated like cows, we’re more likely to behave like cows—growling, barefoot, and smelly snacks.
Although it was first class, the situation was not much better. It’s now common for influencers to spend the night wrapped in curling irons (for blow-drying on the tarmac), with hydrating masks on their faces and their feet hanging out. Modern culture encourages this practice, with thousands of videos on the internet detailing “anti-airplane nighttime beauty routines,” which seem to suggest passengers have forgotten that planes aren’t actually their bedrooms. The exception, of course, is the private shower room in Emirates first class.
But Manisha Sabharwal, a personal stylist who dresses high-net-worth businesswomen who fly two to three times a week, says the whole flight wardrobe debate fundamentally misses the point of creating the so-called elegant airline passenger of 2025. “When we put in the effort, it has a huge psychological impact. It changes the mood. But the suit, the heels, it’s a little bit of a struggle. It’s like being the most overdressed person at a party. Why are you trying so hard?”
Instead, she says travel fashion has changed. It still doesn’t involve wearing pajamas, but you don’t need to dress like you would for the office. “The new travel dress code requires people to prioritize comfort,” explains Sabharwal. “It is Elevated Casually. For youngsters, it might be a cashmere suit, complete with a full face of makeup and a pair of Uggs. For women in their 40s, their outfits are slightly more structured, form-fitting, and matching, and they might pair it with their favorite earrings and a gorgeous handbag from The Row. But people always prioritize comfort. They won’t give up on this. “
Her words serve as a reminder to never take fashion advice from politicians. Duffy may think it’s more appropriate for passengers to fly in jeans and a shirt rather than pajamas and slippers – but what if they were silk pajamas from Victoria Beckham and slip-on mules from The Row?
In 2025, airport fashion no longer requires a button and the golden age of travel attire is a thing of the past.