NEW YORK CITY -- A flight attendant arrested after arguing with a passenger on a JetBlue flight then making a grand exit from the aircraft by grabbing some beers and pulling the emergency chute posted $2,500 bail and is out of jail.

Steven Slater, of Queens, was arraigned Tuesday on reckless endangerment and other charges after the dramatic incident Monday afternoon.

Despite the felony charges, Slater's been elevated to folk-hero status by thousands who shrugged off allegations that he endangered others and praised him for his take-this-job-and-shove-it moment.

Slater's mother, Diane, even went so far as to seem proud of her son for his outburst.

"I can understand why he snapped. I would have snapped too," Diane Slater said Tuesday after Steven pleaded not guilty to the various charges against him. "I think he just had a very small meltdown, and I think he deserve to be able to have that meltdown."

Slater had little to say to reporters Tuesday night when he was released from custody.

When asked how he felt about all the outpouring of support Slater said, "It's been very very appreciated. It seems like something here has resonated with a few people. That's kinda neat!"
    
Sentiment online appeared to fall in Slater's court.

Hundreds of thousands of people have declared themselves supporters of Slater on Facebook, and the number was growing by thousands every hour.  At least one fan set up a legal fund on his behalf.

In response to all the hoopla surrounding Slater's meltdown, JetBlue is finally talking about its famously flippant flight attendant ... sort of.

In a company blog posting, the airline poked fun at the attention directed at Slater, who cursed out a passenger over a plane's loud speaker on Monday and then jumped down the emergency slide.

"Perhaps you heard a little story about one of our flight attendants?" the blog joked. JetBlue didn't disclose any information on the case, saying it will let "people speak on their own behalf."

In a posting titled "Sometimes the weird news is about us," JetBlue noted while it isn't talking, plenty of others have formed opinions.

"Like, the entire Internet," the entry read. But "it wouldn't be fair for us to point out absurdities in other corners of the industry without acknowledging when it's about us."

The airline, which is based in the New York City borough of Queens, attracts passengers with ads that mock the often-uncomfortable and high-priced travel experience on other airlines.

JetBlue also acknowledged that Slater's action has resonated beyond airline employees, saying the event "may feed your inner Office Space," a reference to the 1999 comedy about disgruntled technology workers.

Slater is currently suspended pending a further investigation. Public comments on the blog overwhelmingly urged JetBlue to give Slater his job back.

Information from NBC News and the Associated Press was used in this report.