American Airlines flight 136 from Los Angeles-to-London was diverted to John F. Kennedy International Airport this morning, a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokeswoman told news sources.
The flight 136 departed Los Angeles International Airport at 9 pm Eastern time bound for London's Heathrow airport. It was diverted to JFK Airport in New York and has now been cancelled.
News sources say that a member of the flight crew alerted security on the ground that there may be a suspicious person on board, and the decision was made to divert the flight.
The TSA boarded the aircraft when it landed at around 4 am,and took the passenger into custody. The cabin was searched and passengers were re-screened but nothing was found.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said he had received a report the man in question was an American Airlines employee who was traveling in a private capacity.
American Airlines said the suspicious passenger appeared to be an employee that used an employee bus to board the aircraft, which "raised some eyebrows" with flight crew.
An American Airlines flight attendant had taken the employee shuttle bus and bypassed security at LAX, according to a spokeswoman for the airline.
After speaking with the man on the aircraft, the attendant suspected he was not an American Airlines employee and notified the pilot, according to the spokeswoman.
Authorities have interviewed the person in question. Officials say there is no indication the incident represents a serious threat.
Passengers will be accommodated on other flights.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
