A U.S. Airways jet was diverted to Philadelphia International Airport Thursday after a praying Jewish man’s religious item was mistaken for a bomb, police said.

There were initial reports that a man may have been wired with “a device” and FBI and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials and a police bomb squad all attended.

However, when authorities boarded Flight 3079 from LaGuardia Airport to Louisville, they established there was no bomb on board.

Government sources also said the passenger had been “praying loudly” and that the flight was diverted out of an “abundance of caution.”
Officials said a passenger had become alarmed by seeing a man with phylacteries — boxes containing verses from the Bible — which observant Jews strap around their arms and heads as part of morning prayers…

The passengers were due to fly to Louisville on a different plane. It was unclear whether the man wearing the phylacteries would be among them.

So, if you’re afraid of flying and must take a trip by air – don’t pray once you’re on board. At least not in Hebrew or Yiddish.