Flight Attendant Pops Emergency Chute, Escapes Plane at JFK

: Bloomberg; An American Airlines aircraft, left, and two JetBlue aircraft, right, taxi on a runway at JFK.

A jetBlue flight attendant upset because a passenger refused to apologize after accidentally striking him with luggage, allegedly spewed obscenities over the PA system, then activated and slid down a plane’s emergency chute before disappearing into a terminal at John F. Kennedy airport Monday, an airport official said.

JetBlue Flight 1052 from Pittsburgh had taxied to a stop at Terminal 5, Gate C around noon Monday when flight attendant Steven Slater, 38, was struck in the head with luggage that a passenger was trying to unload from an overhead compartment, according to an airport official with knowledge of the incident.

Slater demanded an apology from the passenger, the official said, but the passenger refused. The two argued before the passenger told Slater to “f— off”, the official said. The official said that Slater then got on the plane’s PA system and directed that same obscenity at all the passengers and added that he especially meant it for the man who refused to apologize.

Slater is alleged to have then activated the plane’s inflatable emergency slide, grabbed two beers from the galley, then slid down the chute, the official said.

The attendant then ran from the tarmac into the terminal, the official said. He made his way to his car and drove to his residence in Belle Harbor, Queens, the official said. The official said that jetBlue officials waited until about 25 minutes after the chute was deployed before they notified Port Authority Police. The wait enabled Slater to make the getaway, the airport’s police force. Steve Stampley, a jetBlue spokesman, declined to comment on the alleged reporting delay.

Authorities picked the flight attendant up at his home on Beach 128^th Street Monday afternoon and brought him to the Port Authority Police station at JFK airport for questioning. The official said that Slater was calm when arrested and remained calm throughout his interrogation and the booking process. He was charged with reckless endangerment and criminal mischief. He was awaiting arraignment Monday night. Attempts to reach Slater’s relatives were not successful. (No word on whether the flight attendant was one of the many former NYPD officers in jetBlue’s employ.)

Stampley said that jetBlue’s corporate policy prohibits the company from divulging information about crewmembers.

“At this time, we are working with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to investigate this incident. At no time was the security or safety of our customers or crewmembers at risk,” Stampley said.

Gawker unearthed what appears to be Slater’s MySpace page, which mentions overcoming alcohol and substance abuse, and includes comments about how he ‘loves to max it out with trips around the world, sometimes on a moment’s notice!’