With Americans traveling home during what is projected to be the busiest holiday period in 15 years, a Transportation Department official is advocating for civility and appropriate dress to ease the experience.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) recently launched a pre-Thanksgiving campaign encouraging travelers to “restore civility and manners” by “dressing respectfully” and remembering to use “please” and “thank you” with airport staff.

“The golden age of travel starts with you,” states Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy at the conclusion of a vintage-style video, which juxtaposes scenes of well-dressed, composed passengers in suits and ties with footage of airport altercations and individuals in more informal airport clothing.

Thanksgiving is considered the busiest travel holiday, and Americans might set new records this year, with almost 82 million individuals anticipated to journey at least 50 miles from their residences, as reported by AAA.

For individuals planning to fly on one of the numerous flights scheduled during the Thanksgiving travel period, Duffy recommended that passengers select “a pair of jeans and a decent shirt” instead of “slippers and pajamas” to encourage “slightly better behavior.”

To date this year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has received 1,453 reports of unruly passengers—a decrease from over 2,000 annually between 2022 and 2024, and significantly lower than the peak of 5,973 in 2021. The agency, which enforces a zero-tolerance stance on disruptive passenger conduct, has launched 125 enforcement actions this year and has observed a 400% rise in in-flight incidents since 2019.

This issue appears to be worldwide: The International Air Transport Association reported that many airlines and governments are worried about the frequency of disruptive passenger occurrences in recent years. In 2024, there was one such incident per 395 flights, a slight increase from one per 405 flights in 2023.

Discontent at airports, train stations, roads, and highways could be especially high this week as travelers remember the numerous flight delays and cancellations that occurred during the recent government shutdown. Passenger anger might also be influenced by Duffy’s decision this month to officially revoke a Biden-era regulation that would have compelled airlines to compensate passengers for substantial flight interruptions.

However, temporary flight restrictions implemented by the Transportation Department during the shutdown have since been lifted, and an expert noted that current travel interruptions are “nothing out of the ordinary.” Instead, these disruptions may stem from adverse weather, as two distinct storm systems are predicted to impact states from Texas to North Dakota this week. The FAA cited poor weather as a factor for potential airport delays in New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Houston, and Memphis. As of today, there have been 64 flight cancellations and 2,217 delays for flights entering or exiting the United States.

Some Democratic figures have satirized Duffy’s emphasis on airport conduct and dress. California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office responded to Duffy’s comments by sharing a photo of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy barefoot on an airplane. Sara McGee, a Congressional candidate for the Texas House, stated her intention to wear pajama pants while flying for the remainder of the Trump Administration. McGee commented, “If we’re going to crash due to incompetence, I may as well be cozy when it happens.”