The now-infamous exit by JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater is spurring questions on how financial and security pressures are affecting the overall airline industry.

Slater's dramatic exit from JetBlue Flight 1052 captured the sentiments of many airline passengers and employees, according to The Palm Beach Post, Fla.

"I'm surprised it's taken this long for something like this to happen," said Miami-based American Airlines flight attendant Jeff Pharr, who also indicated the stress level on airplanes has risen since the 9/11 attacks.

Slater has supporters who believe he "took a stand against an unruly passenger and growing stress on flight attendants," according to The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

"There is no way anybody is going to look at this and say it's an appropriate reaction, but just as customers want a bill of rights ... I think we need to be clear on employee rights as well," said Dr. Peter Schwarz, an economics professor at UNC Charlotte.

There are other indicators of stress in the airline industry. The Dallas Morning News reported that complaints to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics about airline service this June have increased almost 90 percent from the same month a year ago.

"Industry cutbacks, decimated perks, swelled traffic and exhaustive safety precautions have changed the nature of flying," according to the paper.

For more stories about the airline industry, check out MCT Regional's hundreds of thousands of new stories each month. To learn more about MCT Regional, call Rick DeChantal at 312-222-4544 or e-mail him at rdechantal@tribune.com.