Airline warns of strict dress code

DRESS CODE POLICY IS ENTIRELY AT THE DISCRETION OF THE AIRLINE.

Saudi Arabian Airlines (also known as Saudia), the national carrier of Saudi Arabia, has provoked social media outrage after warning that inappropriately dressed passengers could be denied boarding.

The restrictions apply to “women exposing legs or arms, or wearing too thin or too tight clothes and men wearing shorts exposing legs” as well as passengers who are barefoot, the airline’s website states.

However, Saudia has yet to confirm whether these requirements apply to all passengers across all classes on the plane, from business travellers to children and babies, or whether male passengers would also be refused boarding if they wear clothes that are too thin or tight or expose their arms.

It also has yet to clarify how the dress code will be enforced during the flight and what might be the consequences for any passengers who remove any clothing that would expose their arms and legs during the flight.

Saudi Arabia’s former head of tourism and health, Ali Al Ghamdi, claimed Saudia’s dress requirements were not exclusive to the carrier but issued by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and enforced in varying degrees by different airlines.

But IATA denied those claims, with a spokesperson saying: “Dress code policy is entirely at the discretion of the airline.”

Saudi Arabian Airlines came under fire in 2015 when it denied claims that it was considering enforcing a gender split on its flights after it reportedly received complaints from male passengers unhappy about other men sitting next to their wives and female family members, and a complaint about a flight attendant being too “flirty.”

Saudi Arabia, which adheres to tenets of Islamic law, dictates a strict dress code nationally. Women in Saudi Arabia, including foreigners, are required to wear an abaya (a long black cloak) that covers the entire body, except for the hands and face, in public, while men are expected to dress conservatively. Men wear a thobe (a traditional dress for men) and a headdress in public.

This isn’t the first time an airline has attempted to impose a dress code. Earlier this year, U.S. carrier United Airlines barred two girls from boarding because they were wearing leggings.

And this May, a group of women travelling to Magaluf, Spain, for a bachelorette party were removed from a Jet2 flight for reportedly wearing T-shirts that read “B ***** s on tour.”