Agreed. And all I'm saying is that (in my humble opinion), the professional look comes in many varieties.
I think the double breasted coat looks great, as does the single breasted one...both classic, fine looks for an airline pilot.
I think a hat looks good too, but is somewhat impractical due to the general custom of not wearing hats indoors and not on a flightline, so the hat/ no hat thing to me in terms of how I visualize a professional look of an airline pilot I see, goes either way in that regard. If it's required, wear it. If it's optional, then your choice.
Leather jacket is still aviation related and something I still equate to an aviator (just speaking me personally, feelings obviously vary). The only difference to me is it's obviously "less formal" of a presentation than a blazer coat. That's where my contention comes that it would appear that the culture of the particular flight department would come into play in that regard. Delta has a more formal culture, and that's great.....they do it well, leather jacket for them does not fit into that mold. SWA has a more relaxed culture, which is also great for them and what they're seeking, and they do that well also, and leather jacket fits more into their mold. Those seem to be the bookends of the deal, so how other operations that fit into that which allow either/or come into play, I'm not as familiar admittedly.
Guess what I'm saying is that I can see some merit on both sides of the argument.
Just no short sleeve with tie!
