Tampa International Airport has ignited a debate over travel attire after jokingly calling for a ban on passengers wearing pyjamas. The airport's official X account posted on Thursday that after successfully going 'Crocs-free,' it had 'seen enough' of pyjamas, declaring 'the madness stops today.' The post, viewed 5.7 million times by mid-afternoon, generated widespread discussion in the comments.
Beau Zimmer, an airport spokesperson, told the Associated Press the post was part of the airport's longstanding tongue-in-cheek social media persona, cultivated since its early days on Twitter. 'Our regular social media followers just eat this stuff up,' he said. 'But obviously this is all in fun, and we encourage our travelers to be comfortable.'
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has encouraged travellers to dress up when flying, reacted with a GIF from 'The Office' of actor John Krasinski saying 'Yes!' The airport later clarified in a statement that the post was a joke, part of 'a playful nod to day-of-travel fashion debates.'
Zimmer noted the airport's online humour has been effective for serious announcements. 'We put out these fun posts with the hope that when we have something critical or really important to say, people will listen,' he said, citing new international route announcements as an example.
