If you're a woman of a certain age (that age at which you decide you never wish to pose for Playboy), you may be at the altar of All That Is Good and True praying that Kyla Ebbert's 15 minutes of fame would be up already!

If you're anyone else, you're probably clicking over to Playboy.com right now to see her sexy lingerie-clad shots (there's also a video of Kyla wearing nothing but a barely-long-enough cowl-neck shirt walking down a hotel hallway). You are probably thinking one of two things: (1) this is the first time that terrible fashion sense actually paid; or (2) Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) is very, very smart.

This is the first time I can remember that some awful PR for an airline ended up paying off for both the airline and the wronged passenger, prolonging not only Kyla Ebbert's 15 minutes but also Southwest's own.

When Ebbert first was escorted off a Southwest plane for her skimpy attire (and, after begging and adjusting her tank top and skirt, allowed back on), she said she was humiliated. It was a few months later before she decided to tell someone about it; probably urged by her boyfriend, hoping to go from ordinary schlep to Boyfriend of Playboy Model. Suddenly: everyone was buzzing. It looked bad for Southwest -- very bad.

But like the Teflon Don of airlines, Southwest bounced back, apologizing to Kyla and offering a skimpy fare sale in her honor. Southwest did not get her permission to use her name in its advertising. It did not affect Southwest's prospects in the slightest.

Now Southwest is memorialized as the launchpad for the fake-blonde-who-could turn 15 minutes into too long; and it's not lost a bit of its edgy, sexy cache. Bravo, Southwest, for turning mud into smutty gold.

Picture this: You arrive for your Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) flight early. You manage to avoid packing excessive amounts of liquids in your carry-on baggage. You remember your ID, you wait until your seat is called, you stow your bags properly. You're even prepared to turn off your electronic devices and stow your tray table and put your seat in its upright and locked position when ... you're asked to leave the plane because you're showing a little too much leg.

Haha! What is this, 1951? Nope. It's 2007, and a few months ago waitress Kyla Ebbert (who works at Hooters, where scantily-clad is a good thing) was escorted off a Southwest Airlines flight from San Diego to Tucson because her outfit -- a miniskirt, tank top, and cropped sweater -- was too revealing (I don't see any cleavage and she was wearing a bra). She put up a fuss and was eventually let back on the plane after a lecture on her dress, or lack thereof.

Update: After apologizing to Ebbert, Southwest Airlines held a fare sale in honor of miniskirts -- it was fabulously popular with customers, but Kyla wasn't so pleased. To spite them -- or perhaps to take advantage of her 15 minutes of fame before it went away, leaving her still-penniless -- Kyla agreed to pose nude for Playboy.

Southwest Airlines has a history of questionable fashion judgment -- see here:

I'm all for appropriate clothing, but personally saw nothing in Ebbert's outfit that was cringe-worthy. And if it was?