Wear what you want when going flying, but beware the ‘buddy pass’ fine print

United Airlines found itself in the middle of a public relations kerfuffle this weekend after it did not allow two young girls to board a flight because they were wearing leggings.

It was later revealed that the girls were traveling on employee passes, sometimes colloquially referred to as “buddy passes.” Such passes allow family and friends of airline employees to fly for free, but they come with conditions that include dress-code guidelines.

But that detail emerged only after the story went viral across social media, leaving some casual fliers wondering what the dust-up means for them.

“Nothing,” said Henry Harteveldt, founder of the San Francisco-based travel consultancy Atmosphere Research Group.

“The only thing a passenger needs to know when they fly is that an airline may have a set of standards around language,” he said, adding that clothing with lewd or hateful messages is the most likely to cause problems.

“Beyond that, as a passenger, you can wear pretty much anything that is socially acceptable,” Harteveldt said. “That may vary based on the part of the world you’re traveling in. But, in the United States, leggings and yoga pants are worn by many passengers.”

However, that’s not the case for fliers using employee passes.

“Airlines have two sets of standards when it comes to attire on a plane,” Harteveldt said. “There’s one for those of us who make up the traveling public and who are paying for our tickets. And there’s a second set of standards that applies to people who are traveling on airline passes. In the airline business, you’re called a ‘non-revenue’ passenger. This includes airline employees and friends who may be using so-called buddy passes.”

Some airline employees have been known to insist on a promise by recipients to dress appropriately before they dole out their passes.