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Passengers flying with Spirit Airlines have been warned that “offensive” tattoos and inadequate clothing could see them denied boarding or even kicked off a flight.
The airline updated its ‘Contract of Carriage’ on January 22, which lays out the terms and conditions that passengers must abide by if they want to fly with the carrier.
In Spirit’s update, it says that a guest will not be permitted on board the aircraft or may be required to leave the plane if they are “barefoot or inadequately clothed,” which it defines as see-through clothing, not adequately covered and the exposure of breasts, buttocks or other private parts.
The airline will also not tolerate clothing or body art such as tattoos that are “lewd, obscene or offensive in nature”.
The guidance also states typical reasons why a passenger may be removed from a flight, such as being disorderly, abusive, violent, intoxicated, having a contagious disease, unwilling or unable to sit with a seatbelt fastened or having an “offensive odor unless caused by a qualified disability”.
Guests will also be removed if they attempt to interfere with the flight crew’s duties or pose a security risk onboard.
There have also been several debates over what is considered as clothing inadequate enough to be removed from a flight.
In October, two guests were supposedly removed from a flight from Los Angeles to New Orleans for wearing crop tops.
One passenger named Teresa took to Instagram to claim that a “sexist” male flight attendant forced her and her friend to go back to the gate because of their outfits.
According to Teresa, everyone “including flight staff” agreed that she and her friend’s crop tops weren’t “against their dress code,” despite the male flight attendant’s complaint.
“This is appalling service, that in 2024 we are getting kicked out of a plane for ONE MALE flight attendant not liking our shirts,” Teresa’s Instagram caption said. “Everyone working at the airport agreed this was an act of prejudice, discrimination and misogynist and that we should take legal actions.”
In a statement sent to The Independent, a representative for Spirit Airlines said: “Our Contract of Carriage, a document all Guests agree to upon making a reservation with us, includes certain clothing standards for all Guests traveling with us. We are investigating the matter, and we are in contact with the Guests about their experience.”
Over the past few years, there have been a string of cases where airline staff have deemed a passenger’s clothing, often a woman’s, as “inappropriate”, meaning they were either kicked off the flight or asked to cover up.
In March, a woman also claimed that Delta Air Lines had targeted her for not wearing a bra after a flight attendant came to her seat, asked her to speak in private and escorted her off the plane.
The Independent has contacted Spirit for further comment on the new contract.
For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast
