Contest: Steven Slater and Toktumi want your crazy flight stories


Who would have thought that Steven Slater could actually get another job? The disgraced former flight attendant has even picked up a gig in the travel industry, though he obviously isn’t pushing the beverage cart any more. Rather, the man who may have had close to two decades of flight attendant experience, depending on which of his claims you believe, has landed his first job as a spokesman.

Slater is the public face of Toktumi’s mobile communication app Line2. If you’re on a wifi-equipped plane, you can use Line2 to text while in flight. So, why Slater? Well, Toktumi’s latest contest involves in-flight insanity, so he as a natural fit. And, let’s be realistic – it’s not like he has much else to do. To enter the Mile High Text Club Contest, and see if you have a story that tops Slater’s, text your tale to 222-222-2222. Your contributions will appear on http://www.milehightextclub.com starting today. The deadline is December 3, 2010.

The winners will be decided by a panel of judges, one of which will be Slater. If you can win over the flight attendant who cracked under pressure, you may walk home with the grand prize: a weekend holiday shopping trip for two in New York City. Seven iPod Touch devices are available as second prizes, with 13 third-place winners receiving gift cards for six months of free Line2 service.

%Gallery-99568%”In order to spread the word that Line2 allows airline passengers to text from the sky, we hired one of the most famous guys in the airline business today, Steven Slater,” explains Peter Sisson, Founder and CEO of Toktumi. “After talking with Steven, I realized that despite his dramatic approach – which he regrets – he was making a statement about the need to return civility and common courtesy to flying.” It’s an interesting way to make that statement, I guess, given that Slater was far worse than the passengers he encounters. Sisson adds, “He’s a perfect judge for a contest concerning the current state of air travel.” He was a flight attendant for 20 years, and both his parents had long careers in the airline business.

Line2 has a laudable goal for the “Mile High Text Club” contest: the company wants to make in-flight texting the norm, to keep people from yelling into their phones … and ostensibly from creating another Steven Slater moment.

“Line2’s SMS texting is really useful while in flight,” Sisson says. “You can let people know about delays, make plans for the evening, or just pass the time texting with your friends and family while you fly.”

And, you can let them know when a grumpy flight attendant loses his mind, grabs two cold ones and pops the slide.