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Julia Price. (Facebook)
A flight attendant who opened an emergency door and slid down a slide to exit a United Airlines plane in Houston on Monday has been identified.
Julia Price made her bizarre exit after Flight 1246 landed at Bush Intercontinental Airport at about noon following a flight from Sacramento, KPRC-TV reports.
She appears to have intentionally opened the door after the plane came to a full stop at Gate C43, the news station reports.
Price, 47, was fired by United Airlines, the company says.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Video Shows Her Opening the Door & Jumping Down the Slide
United Airlines flight attendant opens door,deploys slide after landing at Bush IAH https://t.co/s1XKfOQ6xj #kprc2 pic.twitter.com/jMCwEFm0I8
— KPRC 2 Houston (@KPRC2) April 5, 2016
The strange incident was recorded by someone inside the Houston airport. You can watch the video, obtained by KPRC-TV, above.
The video shows Julia Price opening the emergency exit door, dropping her bag down about 15 feet to the ground and then jumping down the slide after it. She then takes a few steps, grabs her bag and walks away.
“That’s insane. Why?,” asked Sharon Lovedahl, a traveler at the airport, in an in interview with KPRC. “Why would she do that?”
The Federal Aviation Administration and United Airlines are investigating the incident, according to the Houston Chronicle.
“These slides are supposed to be used only in emergencies,” FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford told the Chronicle.
United Airlines has not released any information about Price’s employment history.
It is also not known why she decided to open the door and exit.
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2. She Is a Former Model, Once Ran a Crepe Cart & Previously Worked for Continental Airlines
Price, who is from Ohio, previously worked for Continental Airlines before the company merged with United.
According to a 2002 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Price was a model in Paris from 1989 to 1997.
She fell in love with French food while living there, she told the newspaper, and opened a crepe cart in Pittsburgh with help from her mother, father and then 7-year-old daughter. She was also working for Continental at the time, according to the article.
3. Her Family Says It Is a Private Matter & Price Is Doing Well
Price’s family spoke with KPRC-TV and told them that it is a “private matter” and that she is doing well since the incident.
In a statement, United Airlines said, “We hold our employees to the highest standards. This unsafe behavior is unacceptable and does not represent the more than 20,000 flight attendants who ensure the safety of our customers. We are reviewing this matter and the flight attendant is no longer employed by United.”
It is not clear if she could face criminal charges.
“I can’t see any wrong doing on a local state or federal level that this flight attendant might have engaged in,” KPRC legal analyst Brian Wrice said. “She didn’t act to put herself, the flight crew or any of those passengers that are on the United plane at risk.”
4. The Plane Was Delayed for 40 Minutes Before Continuing to Fort Lauderdale
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(Getty)
The plane was delayed at the Houston airport for 40 minutes because of the incident, KPRC-TV reports. It eventually continued on to its final destination in Fort Lauderdale.
“When we landed we were told to stay in our seats as deplaning would take a bit longer,” Jonah Vella, a passenger on the flight, told the news station. “Everything seemed to be pretty standard.”
5. She Has Drawn Comparisons to Steven Slater, the Jet Blue Flight Attendant Who Made an Infamous Emergency Exit in 2010
Price has drawn comparisons to Steven Slater, the infamous Jet Blue flight attendant who flipped out in 2010 and made a similar dramatic exit from a plane.
He cursed at a passenger, grabbed a beer and then exited the plane, later saying he was fed up with his job. It is not yet known why Price made her exit.
Slater was eventually sentenced to one year of probation after pleading guilty to attempted criminal mischief, The Guardian reports.
“That was one moment, that was not indicative of who I am,” Slater said after his conviction in 2011. “I feel like I’m in a much better place. I have control over my life.”
