Woman Told She Could Not Board JetBlue Flight Because Her Shorts Were ‘Too Short,’ Needed To Cover Up


A burlesque dancer from Seattle, Washington, was informed that she would need to change her clothing if she wanted to board a flight from Boston to Seattle because her shorts were deemed “too short” by the flight crew. The crew felt that the shorts may be deemed inappropriate by families on the flight and should be changed as not to offend anyone.

The Daily Mail reports that Maggie McMuffin says that she had successfully flown on a JetBlue flight from New York To Boston without incident in the same pair of “too short” black and white shorts earlier in the day. However, when she approached the gate to fly her second leg of her flight back home to Seattle, she was informed the shorts were not appropriate and that she needed to cover up more, as there were families on the flight that may find the attire inappropriate.

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Maggie McMuffin’s friend, Molly McIsaac, wrote about the incident on her Facebook page, noting that “no explanation was given” as to why Maggie could not board the JetBlue flight aside from a statement that “the pilot said her clothes would prevent her from boarding.”

“No explanation was given except that the pilot said her clothes would prevent her boarding the plane. The flight lead asked if she had anything else to wear, and told her if she didn’t they could rebook the flight for her. Maggie ended up having to go to another terminal to buy a pair of women’s sleep shorts in XL for ‘proper coverage’.”

Molly says that her friend had no other clothes available in her carry-on baggage and was forced to go to a nearby terminal store to purchase a pair of “XL” sleep shorts to ensure “proper coverage.” Once Molly changed her shorts into the larger more “covering” shorts, she was able to board to flight. However, Molly says that the whole ordeal shows the “sexist” nature of the world and claims that Maggie’s shorts should not have been a reason to bar her from a flight.

“Sexism is alive and well in this world. How does what Maggie was wearing effect her ability to fly? It doesn’t.”

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JetBlue says they personally called and apologized to Maggie about the incident and refunded her for the shorts she was forced to purchase in the terminal while also providing the woman with a $200 credit to use on future flights as a “goodwill gesture.” Despite the credit and apology from JetBlue customer service, Molly says that her friend is owed an apology from the “sexist” pilot.

“Despite contacting Jet Blue at length, all they have done to ‘make it right’ is refund her for the swim trunks and give her less than $200 in credit. The company apologized but the pilot did not. They have not offered any explanation for their behavior.”

JetBlue says the whole ordeal was a lot less eventful than revealed in the Facebook post, as they claim the gate staff discussed Maggie’s attire and decided it was not appropriate for flying and politely asked her to change. The company claims that Maggie agreed and that the flight continued on as planned.

“The gate and onboard crew discussed the customer’s clothing and determined that the burlesque shorts may offend other families on the flight. While the customer was not denied boarding, the crewmembers politely asked if she could change. The customer agreed and continued on the flight without interruption. We support our crewmembers’ discretion to make these difficult decisions, and we decided to reimburse the customer for the cost of the new shorts and offered a credit for future flight as a good will gesture.”

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What do you think about JetBlue’s response to Maggie McMuffin’s “too short” shorts? Should a woman be denied boarding if her clothing is deemed “inappropriate” by airline staff? Is the denial of boarding due to clothing “sexist?” Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

[Image via Leonard Zhukovsky/Shutterstock.com and Facebook/Molly McIsaac]

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