None of the above apply personally to the choice of name. Sorry. Carry on.

At the airport and just saw 2 guys in pajamas. (OK, technically lounge pants, but they sure look like pajamas.)

No word on how well they are being treated.

Despite the bickering, the question does remain.

I've always dressed nicely for plane flights, regardless of the airline.

It's for me a matter of presenting yourself well to the world.

It's gotten me some perks, but not always.

Still, I prefer not to be a slob or this week's white trash, that I see on airlines today. Nothing like a pink flamingo carry-on.

http://archives.newyorker.com/?i=2012-04-16#folio=CV1

<i> I don't intend to start wearing gym shorts or even what are basically pajamas just so that I am comfortable (I actually have seen passengers dressed that way). </i>

Well, if you were flying in first on long haul international flights on British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qantas and few other major airlines, you may very well end up wearing pajamas which are provided by the airline so you can be comfy sleeping in your private suite on a flat bed with a full pillow, sheets and comforter if needed.

Few years back I flew in first on Cathay Pacific from LA to Hong Kong on a fairly new Airbus 340. In the middle of the night I walked all the way to the back of the plane just to see how long it actually was. It's a very loooong plane. Anyways many saw me in pajamas and slippers walking down the aisle.

You get to keep the PJs and I still have few sets in the bedroom drawer.

but to answer your original question(s), no you probably won't get any preferential treatment just because you wore nice clothes, but if it will make you feel better go for it. It can't hurt.

I don't believe how you are dressed (within reason) effects any of the things you asked about.

<i>I don't believe how you are dressed (within reason) effects any of the things you asked about.</i>

Agreed.

<i>Are there places where or airlines on which, ALL OTHER THINGS BEING EQUAL, how you dress affects how you are treated?</i>

Except it is almost never a situation where everything else is equal. There are so many formal criteria for sorting customers (elite status, partner elite status, corporate partner, preferred travel agent, fare class, etc.), that the potential for dress to impact anything is vanishingly small.

Here is an example I remembered. It's old, it was in the late 1980s or early 1990s.

We were flying into Bali having flown Seattle to Narita to Singapore to Bali. We had enough time for a shower and a change of clothes at Changi. At that time, no visa was required for Indonesia, but technically, you had to show enough money to support yourself and an onward ticket. Being nicely dressed (not suits) we sailed right through immigration with a smile. The people behind us, wearing shorts, t-shirts and carrying backpacks, were required to show tickets and cash/credit cards. They were still at the counter as we left the airport 10 minutes or so later.

<i>It's old, it was in the late 1980s or early 1990s. </i>

That was a lifetime ago in the world of air travel.

I never wear anything more formal than jeans when traveling and have not had any hassles at customs or immigration in any country in at least 15 years.

AAFrequentFlyer, the people in pajamas I'm talking about put them on at home and wear them to airport. They don't have to change once the plane is airborne.