- November 21, 2025
US transport secretary under fire for saying flyers should ‘dress smartly, not wear pyjamas’: ‘We want comfort, not a fashion show’ – The Times of India
US transportation secretary Sean Duffy drew flak after suggesting that air travel would improve if passengers simply “smartened up” and dressed better.Speaking on Fox Business, Duffy promoted a new campaign urging travellers to “bring civility back” to airports. He said passengers should “be nice, say please, say thank you,” and even suggested a return to the days when people “didn’t wear pajamas to the airport.” He urged people to “dress up a little bit.”Some viewers agreed with the general call for politeness, but critics called the comments tone-deaf. They argued that cramped cabins, weather issues, constant delays and rising ticket prices—not passengers’ outfits—are what make flying miserable. Others said it was hypocritical for a Trump Cabinet member to lecture the public on civility while the president routinely uses hostile language online on his Tirth Social account.Duffy said his message was simply meant to encourage patience during the busy holiday travel season, but passengers weren’t buying it. Users on X quickly piled on, trolling, memeing and mocking the transportation secretary for blaming travellers instead of fixing the real problems.
Netizen venting session:
- People want safe air travel with well staffed air traffic control towers, not a f****g fashion show, you idiot! Duffy is what you get when an incompetent moron is in charge of hiring all the other incompetent morons running an organization. This chucklef**k needs to resign now.
- People stand in huge lines to get stuffed into narrow seats with no leg room. The bathrooms are insanely tiny. Disembarking the plane is chaos. The food is barely food. But sure, the problem is wearing comfortable clothing and not dressing up
- People are crammed into tiny seats, paying extra for basic comforts, and dealing with constant delays.. but the real crisis is sweatpants? Maybe fix the system before policing outfits
- Maybe stop treating passengers like cattle and their mood might improve. And hey, you want me to dress up, buy the clothes, clean up the planes, give us more room. Your travel fantasy died in the ’70s. Cry harder.
- Why would I want to dress up when I have to take off my belt and shoes and jacket and have my body fondled to get through security at 6 am?
- You shouldn’t wear your pajamas. But the airlines went from caring about people’s comfort and space to packing people in like sardines and trying to maximize profit by lower their standards.
