A JetBlue flight attendant activated an emergency-exit chute after a dispute with a passenger and slid off a plane that had just pulled up to a gate at Kennedy International Airport on Monday, a law enforcement official said.

The attendant, Steven Slater, fled the tarmac and drove away but was arrested at his home nearby in Belle Harbor, Queens, the official said.

The flight, JetBlue 1052, had left Pittsburgh around 10:30 a.m. with 100 passengers aboard and landed in New York on time around noon.

The plane, an Embraer 190, taxied to Terminal 5, and passengers were ready to get off when the dispute between the passenger and the attendant boiled over, and the attendant activated the inflatable evacuation slide, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing.

Mr. Slater ran from the plane, got into a vehicle he had parked in the employee parking lot, and left the airport, the official said. He faces possible charges of criminal mischief and trespassing.

Investigators were still trying to determine what caused the row, which was apparently witnessed by many of the passengers.

In a statement, JetBlue said it was working with the Federal Aviation Administration and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to investigate the incident.

“At no time was the security or safety of our customers or crew members at risk,” the company said.

(Source: NY Times Blog)