NEW YORK (CBS 2) — A JetBlue flight attendant was arrested Monday following a bizarre incident onboard a flight incoming to John F. Kennedy Airport in which he allegedly inflated the emergency exit slide and rode it down to the tarmac after cursing out passengers over the plane’s intercom.

CBS 2’s Hazel Sanchez got a look at the inflatable emergency slide on Monday afternoon. It was to be towed away after aviation sources said JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater deployed it in a fit of rage just after the plane landed around noon.

Sources said Slater got into a heated argument with a passenger aboard Flight 1052 from Pittsburgh International Airport after the plane landed.

Sources said Slater lost his temper when a passenger attempted to pull baggage out of an overhead bin as the plane taxied to the gate. Sources also said Slater told the passenger to sit down until the plane was parked at the gate, but the passenger yelled expletives at Slater and pulled the bag out, hitting the flight attendant.

Aviation sources said Slater got on the plane’s public address system and yelled:

“To the passenger who called me a (expletive), (expletive) you. I’ve been in the business 28 years. I’ve had it. That’s it.”

Sources said Slater then grabbed some beer from the plane, deployed the inflatable slide, and took off in his car parked in an employee lot.

Aviation sources said JetBlue waited 25 minutes before notifying Port Authority Police.

A manhunt ensued. Police searched the terminals and the airport grounds. Slater was later arrested at the Belle Harbor, N.Y., home he shares with his partner, according to Slater’s mother.

In a statement released by JetBlue on Monday, the airline said it was “working with the FAA and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to investigate the incident.

“There were no injuries and all customers deplaned the aircraft safely through the jetway. At no time was the security or safety of our customers or crewmembers at risk.”

What I don't get is what he did that was so horribly illegal that it necessitated a "manhunt". AFIK, naughty language over PA isn't a crime, blowing a slide isn't a crime. Stealing beer is a crime, but not "manhunt" worthy.

Either way, to this dude, I bet we all wish we could quit a shit job with such style!

Best line from the story:

Sources said Slater then grabbed some beer from the plane, deployed the inflatable slide, and took off in his car parked in an employee lot.

A manhunt ensued. Police searched the terminals and the airport grounds. Slater was later arrested at the Belle Harbor, N.Y., home he shares with his partner, according to Slater’s mother.

Not saying theres anything WRONG with it, but it appears that CBS 2 is being non-judgemental and Steven is meeting the standard stereotype for male flight attendants. Maybe he was just feeling a bit bitchy today.

Not saying theres anything WRONG with it, but it appears that CBS 2 is being non-judgemental and Steven is meeting the standard stereotype for male flight attendants. Maybe he was just feeling a bit bitchy today.

Beat me to it. You know what they say, "Not all gay guys are flight attendants, but all male flight attendants..."

(My apologies to the straight male attendants, all three of you.)

Love the man's style.

This guy deserves an award.

Awesome that he had the foresight to grab beer on his way out. Sounds like something in a movie.

blowing a slide isn't a crime

Actually I think this is. Slides are very expensive to re-pack and rig (I've heard around 500k), so JetBlue will have a decided financial interest to go after this guy. In a way they can say it's stealing from the company, etc. Plus there's a whole host of 'air piracy' laws I'm sure they can charge him on...

edit - looks like he was charged with reckless endangerment (of who? Himself?!?), and criminal mischief.

Man, embodying the sterotype for sure. If only he screeched away in his Miata...

Oh, it gets better! Cops found him in some gay sex at the house!

link

Edited August 10, 201015 yr by Clayton Bigsby

Actually I think this is. Slides are very expensive to re-pack and rig (I've heard around 500k), so JetBlue will have a decided financial interest to go after this guy.

Ask the C-40 crew that popped a slide recently. There is a monetary value attached to that, not 500K though.

link

Kinda sad about how his dad just died of Lou Gehrig's, and his mom has almost succumbed to lung cancer. Imagine having to deal with bitchy PAX and their trivial issues. I think I'd have lost my cool, too. Love the part about popping the slide--talk about leaving on a high note.

I read a few articles today that suggested he was attaining a legendary "everyman" status. He's our new "Joe, the Plumber." The media expected a public outcry about subpar passenger safety, and so far, everyone they interview seems to be in complete agreement with his logic, and in silent awe of his exit strategy.

I hope he gets enough publicity that it will land him a new (better) job.

I submit that this could possibly tie for the best "I QUIT" ever, although it isn't aviation related. "2" on the HOPA however.

Some article said that the woman involved might be some sort of politician. Whatever, but in any case, how can the passenger break rules, hit a flight attendant with luggage (some say hit, some say it fell out of the overhead) and nothing is done? World's unfair I guess.

There's a Steven Slater Facebook page that is about 24 hours old and has over close to 74,000 fans already. There are a couple other support websites popping up as well. Sounds like the general public is pretty much supporting him and decrying rude passengers.

I read a few articles today that suggested he was attaining a legendary "everyman" status. He's our new "Joe, the Plumber." The media expected a public outcry about subpar passenger safety, and so far, everyone they interview seems to be in complete agreement with his logic, and in silent awe of his exit strategy.

Public siding with the FA? Guess that adage about the blindest squirrel is true.

What I don't get is what he did that was so horribly illegal that it necessitated a "manhunt". AFIK, naughty language over PA isn't a crime, blowing a slide isn't a crime. Stealing beer is a crime, but not "manhunt" worthy.

Probably more to do with "public endangerment" [improper use of emergency equipment] and/or improper entry into the airport security area....

"2" to grabbing the beer on the way out the door...!

I submit that this could possibly tie for the best "I QUIT" ever, although it isn't aviation related. "2" on the HOPA however.

i think she still falls to 2nd place behind this dude, but "3" on HOPA! Hot damn!

Oh, it gets better! Cops found him in some gay sex at the house!

link

Just re-hacking some currency before going to jail for a while. Shows his brilliance just like grabbing the beer did.

Cue prison rape jokes in 3. . . 2. . . 1.

It's not rape if he consents. Also, I doubt he's going to prison, probably just a bunch of community service.

Although I agree that rude pax are really fucking annoying, why is it that this dude's adios from JetBlue is getting so much positive attention? I think he's just as much of an idiot for doing what he did.

I submit that this could possibly tie for the best "I QUIT" ever, although it isn't aviation related. "2" on the HOPA however.

"3"

I submit that this could possibly tie for the best "I QUIT" ever, although it isn't aviation related. "2" on the HOPA however.

A hoax, alas, put on by the Chive. This young lady is an actress.

She is, however, a total HOPA.

Although I agree that rude pax are really ######ing annoying, why is it that this dude's adios from JetBlue is getting so much positive attention? I think he's just as much of an idiot for doing what he did.

because we've all had shit jobs at some point, and i'm pretty sure we've all dreamed about going out in such style. This dude is a hero to everyone stuck in a dead end fight club job.

A hoax, alas, put on by the Chive. This young lady is an actress.

She is, however, a total HOPA.

3 on HOPA. Hoax link.

People may think about it, but folks are rarely stupid enough to do it. Most realize throwing a hissy fit and making a dramatic exit when they can't handle an occassional demanding day on the job probably isn't worth the 15 min of fame.

Have fun in the unemployment line, jackwagon.

He probably already has a contract for a talk show and/or an advance on his book deal.

People may think about it, but folks are rarely stupid enough to do it. Most realize throwing a hissy fit and making a dramatic exit when they can't handle an occassional demanding day on the job probably isn't worth the 15 min of fame.

Have fun in the unemployment line, jackwagon.

Damn good call Gearpig.

JetBlue flight attendant wants his old job back

New York (CNN) -- The flight attendant whose dramatic departure from a JetBlue plane at a New York City airport has transformed him into a folk hero to some wants his job back, his lawyer told reporters Thursday.

"That's his life," Steven Slater's Legal Aid defense attorney Howard Turman told reporters outside his client's home in Queens, near John F. Kennedy International Airport, where Slater's exit via an emergency slide vaulted him to national attention. "His father was a pilot; his mother was a flight attendant. That's in his blood. That's what he likes to do."