WASHINGTON (AP) – A U.S.-bound passenger jet diverted Friday morning to Halifax International Airport because it sent out a false hijacking alarm returned to the air in the afternoon and flew to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, its original destination.

Canadian fighter jets escorted Virgin Atlantic Airways’ Flight 45 to the Nova Scotia airport because of the false alarm. It landed safely at 11 a.m. EDT and was met by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canadian Border Services Agency, said U.S. Homeland Security Department spokeswoman Katie Montgomery.

SWAT team members were seen entering the Airbus A340-600 as it sat on the tarmac with its 273 passengers and 16 crew member still on board. The plane had left London Heathrow Airport at 3:59 a.m. EDT, the airline said.

The airline issued a statement saying the technical issues involved in the false alarm were resolved and it apologized for any upset or inconvenience to passengers.

“The transponder sent out a false alert,” said Virgin Atlantic spokeswoman Brooke Lawer.

Lawer said the airline was in contact with the captain and the flight crew, who said the flight deck door was locked and secured.

The flight was intercepted in Canadian airspace by two CF-18s out of Bagotville, Quebec, said Maj. Douglas Martin, spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Greg Martin said transponders rarely malfunction.

“It does happen,” Martin said.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said the president was briefed about the plane incident while clearing brush on his Texas ranch and was being kept apprised of the situation.

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