Why dressing smart during a flight WON’T get you a free upgrade – and what you need to do instead

A FREQUENT flyer has debunked the myth that you will get a free flight upgrade if you dress smartly.

Immanuel Debeer, who often shares the best flight hacks on his Instagram account called it "garbage".

He wrote on his page, quoting someone else's post: "Wearing nice clothes gets you an upgrade.’ What a bunch of garbage.”

Another traveller agreed, saying: "There’s really no need to flex (especially when 80%+ of it is likely fake on social media).”

Travel website explained: "The truth is this. Airlines have a pretty straightforward system for doling out upgrades, and it has very little to do with what a passenger is wearing.

"Each airline has its own hierarchy when it comes to upgrades, but most follow the same general outline.

"Naturally, paying customers come first - if you want to snag a discounted premium cabin seat, you can ask the agent at the check-in desk if there are any upgrades available.

"Sometimes you’ll get lucky, and if the cabin has open seats, you might be offered an upgrade for a few hundred bucks.

"But no, even if you’re dressed to the nines, you won’t get a free upgrade at the desk."

Immanuel hit back at people on social media back in August, who slammed him for wearing jeans in first class.

One person commented on his picture: “He should at least dress the part. I hate slobs on planes."

However, Immanuel replied: "How to tell if someone never flies business/first: they will tell you what to wear or how to dress."

There is another way you may end up in first class if you're in economy - and it's if your seat is broken.

Travel hack website Life Hacker said: “I’ve been on several packed flights where passengers had broken coach seats and were reassigned to business or first since they were the only seats left.”

However, he added that you shouldn't break your seat on purpose, as it's a crime which could get you kicked off the flight and even banned from the airline.

And a British Airways flight attendant explained how checking in online is ruining your chances of a free upgrade - as you are most likely to get one while checking in at the gate.