US Airways Flight 3079 operated by Chautauqua Airlines was flying from LaGuardia Airport en route to Louisville, Kentucky when the incident unfolded around 9:00 a.m. Thursday.
A flight attendant became concerned after seeing a man thought to have "wires attached to his head and connected to his hands."
Once it landed, the plane was isolated on a taxiway between the two main runways at the far northern end of the airport. It was surrounded by police, fire and EMS workers. Officers went onboard with hazardous device technicians.
However police discovered that, during the flight, a 17-year-old boy put on a tefillin, also known as a phylactery, which is consists of two boxes attached by leather straps. It's worn on the arm and head during certain Jewish services.
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It has been confirmed that the teen did not have an explosive device.
"He did, we believe, attempt to explain what the device was, but because of New York City's close proximity to Philadelphia there wasn't a lot of time in the air for the crew to make a determination," said Chief Inspector Joseph Sullivan of the Philadelphia Police. "So, they chose to err on the side of caution."
"He did nothing to cause any alarm among the other passengers," said Sullivan.
Airport sources tell Action News that the plane had already pass PHL en route to Louisville, Kentucky before turning around. Airport officials then shut down all operations to allow the airplane to circle back and land.
Operations were shut down for approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Airplanes are now landing and departing as part of normal operations.