Off his trolley? Angry air steward slides out of work

[Don]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world ... ff-his-tro

JetBlue may not be the "world's favourite airline", but its recently departed employee, Steven Slater, has surely just secured himself the status of being the world's favourite air steward.

Mr Slater was entirely anonymous until a passenger hit him in the head with his overhead baggage aboard a flight taxiing at New York's John F Kennedy Airport on Monday. But when the passenger refused to apologise for his actions, Mr Slater struck a blow for put-upon flight attendants aboard budget airlines everywhere. He announced his immediate retirement over the intercom and promptly exited the aeroplane via its emergency slide, snaffling a couple of beers from the refreshments trolley for good measure.

Mr Slater, who was freed on £2,500 bail yesterday on charges of criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing, found himself in the unlikely position of being an instant folk hero. The incident vaulted its 38-year-old protagonist into the pantheon of aviation superstars alongside Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the US Airways pilot who put his aircraft down safely on the Hudson River after a flock of birds went into the engines.

And if the drinks-cart veteran was rueing his astonishing adieu as he sat in a Queens courtroom yesterday, it must have been some consolation that hordes around the land were crowding Facebook and Twitter pages to praise the manner of his departure from the aircraft – and presumably his career – and printing T-shirts bearing the slogan "Free Steven Slater".

The particulars of Mr Slater's sudden departure were just as engaging as the broad strokes. His duel with an unruly passenger began when his foe started to take down her bag from an overhead locker too soon after landing, and Mr Slater asked her to wait. The passenger paid no attention, retrieved her bag anyway and in the process banged the attendant on the head. She refused to apologise and swore at him.

That was when the cabin pressure, so to speak, got too much for Mr Slater. According to witnesses, he used the public address system to tell the woman exactly what he thought of her. "To the passenger who called me a motherfucker, fuck you," he stormed. "I've been in the business 28 years. I've had it. That's it."

Then he pulled a lever to activate the emergency evacuation chute and slid down. History does not record whether he removed his shoes first.

Mr Slater commutes between New York and California, where he has been caring for his dying mother, once a flight attendant herself, as he did for his father, a former pilot who died after suffering Lou Gehrig's disease – a form of motor neurone disease.

Mr Slater's MySpace page appears to express what might be termed flamboyant ambivalence about his job. "Chances are I am flying 35,000ft somewhere over the rainbow on my way to some semi-fabulous JetBlue Airways destination!" he writes. "Truly, some are better than others. But I am enjoying being back in the skies and seeing them all."

His journey yesterday was not especially exotic. After hitting the tarmac, he retrieved a bag from the terminal, took the train to a car park and drove to his home in nearby Queens. Within minutes, the street was swarming with airport police and Mr Slater, still wearing a grin, was taken into custody.

Of all his alleged crimes, it seems that activating the emergency slide was especially egregious, since anyone underneath it could have been injured.

However, none of that mattered much to ordinary Americans hearing his tale. After all, who hasn't fantasised about "telling your boss to take this job and shove it", mused Phil Catelinet, from Brooklyn, who was one of the passengers who witnessed the incident. He added: "It's pretty much the craziest thing I have ever seen on a plane."

[Don]

Some beer company has to sponsor this guy. Dude going down the emergency slide with a beer in his hand, that's priceless.

[Saint John]

Everyone at work was talking about it during lunch and they were all sticking up for him ... except me. I'm sure it took a lot longer for people to get their luggage because of the emergency slide being released and potentially having to interview witnesses, so I would have been furious at this fuckhead.

[BobbyinTN]

I love it. Now THAT was an exit.

[Don]

In all truthfulness, he got in the car, realized that he had grabbed the beer instead of wine coolers, and literally sat there crying for a good five minutes.

[cyndy!]

here's the taiwanese CGI re-enactment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBvakgglAPM

[Don]

I don't always slide down emergency ramps, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.

[conversationpc]

I don't always slide down emergency ramps, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.

[Don]

Cyndy!'s signature FTW!!!

[cyndy!]

Cyndy!'s signature FTW!!!

"last child" is one of my favorite aerosmith tunes.

[Saint John]

I don't always slide down emergency ramps, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.

This might be the funniest fucking thing ever posted on here.

[conversationpc]

I don't always slide down emergency ramps, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.

This might be the funniest fucking thing ever posted on here.

Nah...My nominee would be this nugget by TNC in response to a posted pic of Neal Schon making one of his guitar faces...

When my feeble minded granddad makes this same expression it is usually accompanied by a staff a nurses in hazmat suits rushing into the room with a hose and garden trowel.

That STILL almost makes me piss my pants.

[YoungJRNY]

Would of been cool if he kicked a baby in the face right before he jumped out. That would of been SWEET.

[Rick]

While this is amusing on the surface, it was, as that flight attendant was fully aware, a very dangerous thing to do when he deployed that slide. As the article writer said, if anyone had been beneath that slide, on the ground, there is no telling the types of injuries they would have sustained.

People are hurt extensively every year due to accidental slide deployments on the exit doors. Those things are big, heavy, and they inflate extremely fast, like a cars airbag, only they're much, much bigger and inflate with a whole lot more force.

I don't know where the plane was in relation to the terminal, so maybe he did know that no one could have been in the area, but this was an incredibly stupid thing to do. I sure hope they don't make a celebrity of this idiot, but I'll bet the farm he will be on every talk show.

[Babyblue]

While this is amusing on the surface, it was, as that flight attendant was fully aware, a very dangerous thing to do when he deployed that slide. As the article writer said, if anyone had been beneath that slide, on the ground, there is no telling the types of injuries they would have sustained.

People are hurt extensively every year due to accidental slide deployments on the exit doors. Those things are big, heavy, and they inflate extremely fast, like a cars airbag, only they're much, much bigger and inflate with a whole lot more force.

I don't know where the plane was in relation to the terminal, so maybe he did know that no one could have been in the area, but this was an incredibly stupid thing to do. I sure hope they don't make a celebrity of this idiot, but I'll bet the farm he will be on every talk show.

[Melissa]

The funniest part to me is that he got on the PA system and told the bitchy passenger off I love it!

[Suzanne]

I don't blame him a bit except I don't agree with the way he handled it. People are motherf**kers these days and only care about themselves it seems. A simple apology shouldn't have been that hard to get from the passenger.

[AlteredDNA]

The funniest part to me is that he got on the PA system and told the bitchy passenger off I love it!

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

[Everett]

Where did the guy get beers from anyway?

[KenTheDude]

Where did the guy get beers from anyway?

"snaffling a couple of beers from the refreshments trolley for good measure."

Hooked on Phonics apparently doesn't work for everyone.

[conversationpc]

While this is amusing on the surface, it was, as that flight attendant was fully aware, a very dangerous thing to do when he deployed that slide. As the article writer said, if anyone had been beneath that slide, on the ground, there is no telling the types of injuries they would have sustained.

People are hurt extensively every year due to accidental slide deployments on the exit doors. Those things are big, heavy, and they inflate extremely fast, like a cars airbag, only they're much, much bigger and inflate with a whole lot more force.

I don't know where the plane was in relation to the terminal, so maybe he did know that no one could have been in the area, but this was an incredibly stupid thing to do. I sure hope they don't make a celebrity of this idiot, but I'll bet the farm he will be on every talk show.

You're absolutely correct.

[lights1961]

CLASSIC... and the saftey thing is something not to laugh at for sure Rick... but you have to admit to snap like that and just slide off the aircraft is one for the record books of harmless happenings... he didnt shoot anyone... just defended himself on the PA system... was fed up with crappy passengers on a crappy airline and fled... after 2 years on those flights I would have snapped a lot sooner.
most of the passengers on that airline... I cant even imagine, what he has had to deal with...

[portland]

CLASSIC... and the saftey thing is something not to laugh at for sure Rick... but you have to admit to snap like that and just slide off the aircraft is one for the record books of harmless happenings... he didnt shoot anyone... just defended himself on the PA system... was fed up with crappy passengers on a crappy airline and fled... after 2 years on those flights I would have snapped a lot sooner.
most of the passengers on that airline... I cant even imagine, what he has had to deal with...

Nurse's have it far worse.....trust me.

[StevePerryHair]

CLASSIC... and the saftey thing is something not to laugh at for sure Rick... but you have to admit to snap like that and just slide off the aircraft is one for the record books of harmless happenings... he didnt shoot anyone... just defended himself on the PA system... was fed up with crappy passengers on a crappy airline and fled... after 2 years on those flights I would have snapped a lot sooner.
most of the passengers on that airline... I cant even imagine, what he has had to deal with...

Nurse's have it far worse.....trust me.

My husband always says that cops have it best..... though they do to a degree know the importance of community and being a positive influence, when dealing with a nasty person or a criminal it all changes. When he worked at disney, if someone called him a "motherfucker" he'd have to smile and say, thank you, have a nice day... now he can say fuck you without the dramatic exit from his job

[annpea]

I, understand the safety issue... but I have to give the dude a high five on his exit from hell.LMAO

[bluejeangirl76]

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

This one isn't bad either... I L'd MAO at this:

http://thechive.com/2010/08/10/girl-qui ... 33-photos/

[Don]

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

This one isn't bad either... I L'd MAO at this:

http://thechive.com/2010/08/10/girl-qui ... 33-photos/

Cute but so contrived.

[bluejeangirl76]

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

This one isn't bad either... I L'd MAO at this:

http://thechive.com/2010/08/10/girl-qui ... 33-photos/

Cute but so contrived.

god damn.

I read this on my phone yesterday. all I could see was the basic story and the photos. Just now when I got the link to post, I saw the follow up that they posted today.... LOL.

I was honestly suspicious because the site it "the chive". clearly a ripped off idea.

but it's still funny

[AlteredDNA]

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

This one isn't bad either... I L'd MAO at this:

http://thechive.com/2010/08/10/girl-qui ... 33-photos/

Cute but so contrived.

And fake (not sure that's what you meant by contrived) - http://thechive.com/2010/08/11/a-word-f ... 16-photos/

[AlteredDNA]

I have to say, it's one of the best "take this job and shove it" moments I've ever heard of...

This one isn't bad either... I L'd MAO at this:

http://thechive.com/2010/08/10/girl-qui ... 33-photos/

Cute but so contrived.

god damn.

I read this on my phone yesterday. all I could see was the basic story and the photos. Just now when I got the link to post, I saw the follow up that they posted today.... LOL.

I was honestly suspicious because the site it "the chive". clearly a ripped off idea.

but it's still funny

Agreed - and I'm slow!