ST. PAUL, Minn. - As the co-owner of St. Paul travel agency Escape With Us Vacations, Theresa Williams spends her days booking trips across the globe for her clients.
But for much of her life, Williams did the traveling. Since her husband worked for United Airlines, she flew for free.
“We flew standby all the time,” said Williams. “You can literally take your family and travel the world for next to nothing.”
Those flights don't have a price, but they do have conditions. Fliers using a so-called buddy pass must behave like employees. That includes honoring a dress code, which Theresa's own daughter once forgot when she showed up to fly in flip-flops.
“The rules are made very clear,” Williams said. “(So) we had to go to an airport shop and buy her the appropriate shoes to travel in. And we thought, ‘We screwed up, we should've known she can't wear flip-flops, so let's get her something that works.’”
That's not what happened Sunday when two girls in Denver tried to board a United flight on a buddy pass, denied at the gate for wearing leggings. It set off a firestorm on social media until United explained the rule is just for those using passes, a ban Williams says is no secret and nothing new.
“It is clearly noted that leggings, mini skirts, any type of like row clothing, dresses, skirts for women are not allowed on a pass,” Williams said.
That means other passengers can wear what they’d like, with several airlines today saying there are no real restrictions on passenger's clothing. But for those using passes, the dress code remains as the price you pay for a no-cost flight.
“If you accept that pass,” said Williams, “Then you also accept the rules that go along with it.”
Other airlines KARE 11 talked with Monday say they have similar dress codes for travelers using flight passes.
Delta, for example, said it "asks employees and their family and friends flying on pass privileges to use their best judgment when deciding what to wear on a flight."