If you are changing planes in a wintery airport, you might want to have a coat in case you “get stuck” for whatever reason.
I always keep one of these lightweight down jackets in my rollaboard. They weigh nothing and scrunch up to minimal space. They come in Men’s & Women’s.
https://m.uniqlo.com/us/product/women-ultra-light-down-jacket-146390.html
^^cool jacket @GMTplus7 . . . what color do you get?
Over the years and scrounging season’s end sales, I’ve accumulated black, olive, tan. I take the tan one on springtime trips.
If u look at the photos, you’ll see it comes w a little travel sack.
The WSJ even mentions the cheap & useful Uniqlo jacket
http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-cool-way-for-guys-to-stay-warm-this-winter-1448307909
I love the pink one but it’s much more “loud” than I normally wear for travel. Tan looks versatile.
I have a silver down jacket–it has been worn by me, my mom and my petite D. It’s so versatile! It was $40 at Costco!
Once recently, I was instructed to go through pre-check for no apparent reason. The TSA lady waved me vaguely in another direction – something like “over there by that white sign.” She then ran after me and yelled at me when I moved toward the wrong sign, gave me another set of directions – which evidently I still didn’t understand – screamed at me again when I moved off in another wrong direction – and then grabbed my arm and literally dragged me to where she wanted me to go – where there was absolutely no white sign anywhere in sight.
On another topic: I really, really wish that my son would bring a winter coat with him when he flies to the Washington, DC area to visit us at Christmas, instead of counting on the heater in his rental car to keep him warm on the hour-long drive to our house. What if the car broke down? But the problem is that he lives in California and doesn’t own a winter coat.
I have never ever been on a plane that is too cold. I grew up in a northern state and we cracked the windows at night in the dead of winter. 74F is unbearable to me unless the humidity is very low.
I wear a dress on the plane to be as comfortable as possible. I pack an extra pair of socks to wear over my clean socks at TSA if I do not have precheck.
Yup! I do the same. My bare feet or my good socks do not touch those filthy TSA mats. I do not mind walking barefoot, but not in places where gazillions of feet step on the same spot every day!
@Marian, I wish my son who drove back and forth to Albany NY would keep a coat in his car, at least in the winter. But nope, I’m not aware of him wearing a coat since maybe middle school, unless we were skiing.
Flying out tomorrow and just checked the weather because I’m about to start packing. It says rain through Saturday, then clear and warming into mid-70s until I come back Tuesday. Now I have to plan for both with one small carry-on. Why can’t it be all lousy or all nice so I don’t have to think?
Pre-checked for this trip. I was yelled at once for forgetting I had sunglasses on top of my head in the x-ray machine. Another time in pre-check for taking my laptop out and slowing things up. My goal is make it both legs of this trip without getting yelled at. 
Even in CA, it can be handy to have a good hoodie. Maybe buy him a warm American Giant hoodie. I have read that folks are finding them warm enough to keep them warm in very cold temps ( because they are thick, including hood), plus since its cotton it breathes. If you refer each other, the person referred gets 15% discount and referrer gets $15 off after person referred naked purchase.
I’m flying to Texas from Maine next Tuesday. Going from high temps of 50 to high temps in the upper 80s! I don’t know how I’m going to keep up my running in Austin. My dad’s retiring after 52 years as a professor at UT-Austin, so I have to go! Otherwise, I would restrict my trips to Texas to December through March.
A dress??? Sounds horrible. Don’t wear them except for weddings- only own a couple sort of dressy ones plus a skirt. I’m the one in shirt and shorts instead of a dress in that 2-4 year old girls back yard photo from a 1950’s summer day- I’ll bet we chose our clothes for play (sister and two neighbors, one of us looked at the camera as well…). I dress for the travel with clothes for the destination in the carryon. Long or short sleeved shirt with a sweater for the plane and long pants, shoes with socks- not my usual Florida sandals. When travelling by car we keep a couple of days worth of clothes in carryons and leave the rest in a big suitcase in the trunk. Much easier to have fewer choices in the morning and not drag everything in.
Have left winter coats in the car trunk some trips. Do they get cold!
This is my go to travel to warmer destinations dress (slightly different colors):
http://www.modcloth.com/shop/dresses/adore-county-dress-in-zigzags
It is made in the US, completely washable, and the fabric feels nice against the skin.
This occurs more on int’l flights were the FA’s turn the temp down low so the pax can go to sleep and not bother them.
It also occurs on “barbie jets”.
NOT for me- sleeveless and too long! I much prefer pants! But- I was never a girly girl…
A great time wasting activity for me in airports is to people watch and “outfit” watch. I like to imagine if what people are wearing is who they are or who they are trying to impress. 
Do the people who really dress schleppy really act and dress schleppy in real life?!
Is the person who seems dressed from head to toe (heels and all) at the airport rich/famous/snobby???
Is the person in the business suit literally flying for a meeting and back in a matter of hours?
I find it fascinating! I’ll be flying from Ohio to Boston next week. I will dress for comfort - but not schleppy! Nicer,new black yoga type pants that are not skin tight, a fitted tshirt and a 1/4 zip athletic pullover in a bright color with my running shoes (so they don’t have to fit in my carry on!). So comfortable, but respectable.
I like to wear college t-shirts – they often spark conversations.
I WISH I could be one of those women I see in the airport who somehow managed to look pulled together, cute AND comfy. They totally must put a lot of thought into their outfit.
I try to do that sometimes. And sometimes I pull it off and manage to look pulled together and cute while being comfy. But usually though I look like a schmuck because I like to work out when I travel and therefore end up wearing my tennis shoes (they take up so much room if they are packed!) so I look like dumpy schmucky traveler. I have tried to upgrade my comfy look with some sleeker yoga pants and top and not just the sweats look.
But I usually stand and admire those who look cute and pulled together.
In response to abasket’s questions to herself:
“Is the person who seems dressed from head to toe (heels and all) at the airport rich/famous/snobby???”
Not the rich and famous!! The rich and famous women are the super skeletal ones wearing yoga pants, sunglasses (inside), and a baseball cap pulled low over their faces. The rich and famous men wear baggy khakis, sweatshirts, tennis shoes, sunglasses and baseball caps pulled low. (I used to fly back and forth between LAX and JFK several times a month back when United’s PS flights flew into JFK and I saw virtually every celebrity you could think of on those flights, so I have first-hand knowledge!)
“Is the person in a business suit literally flying for a meeting and back for a couple of hours?”
You’ll usually see me in a biz suit at the end of the day, when everyone heads straight out of meetings to the airport. The shortest time I’ve been on the ground after a cross-country flight was about 3.5 hours – red-eye flight; change in airport; cab to courthouse for short hearing; cab back to airport. Yuk. But same-day round-trips to closer places – LA to SF for example – are common and easily doable. Biz clothes on the plane and no luggage.