A Germany-bound plane from Houston was forced to land at John F. Kennedy International Airport due to a threat made against the aircraft, officials said Monday night.

As CBS2’s Valerie Castro reported, Lufthansa flight 411, which was headed for Frankfurt, made an emergency landing late Monday after a bomb threat was made over the phone Monday evening, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said.

The threat was called into Lufthansa’s corporate offices and when the pilot was informed, he chose to divert to JFK, Port Authority sources told CBS2.

Authorities were treating it as a viable threat and the NYPD Counterterrorism Unit is responding along with the Port Authority Police Department, sources told CBS2. But there was no indication of trouble beyond the threat by phone.

Police said the aircraft was moved to a secure area away from the airport and passengers on the plane were evacuated late Monday. A massive emergency response surrounded the plane once it was on the ground.

A Port Authority source said 530 passengers had been on board. The passengers were put onto buses shuttled to an unknown location.

Hundreds of passengers are hoping to leave John F. Kennedy Airport Tuesday.

(AP)