ROMULUS (AP) Fighter jets escorted a Northwest Airlines flight with 78 people on board to Detroit Metropolitan Airport yesterday morning.

Flight 191 from Reagan Washington National Airport to Minneapolis was diverted to Detroit Metro and landed at 10:12 a.m., Northwest said in a statement.

The airplane, an Airbus A320, received the escort because of a threatening note, the airline said.

"The passenger was thumbing through the magazine pouch and reads a note indicating that there was a bomb on the plane," said FBI Special Agent Hank Glaspie.

The note then was turned over from a flight attendant to the captain, who was directed to land the plane at the nearest airport, Glaspie said.

No bomb was found on the aircraft, said FBI spokeswoman Maria Llompart.

"We"re trying to figure out when it (the note) got there," Llompart said.

The airplane was expected to continue to its final destination, she said.

"It appeared that the plane did not pose a threat, and they were continuing its investigation of passengers and crew," Llompart said.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Tony Molinaro said Northwest dispatch told his agency there was a security problem and asked to divert the plane.

The pilot was in touch with air traffic controllers, Molinaro said, who determined Detroit Metro was the closest and safest place to land.

The fighter jet escort came from Selfridge Air National Guard Base, in Macomb County"s Harrison Township.

"Our aircraft from the 107th fighter squadron did respond to a request from NORAD, North American Air Defense Command, today," said Selfridge spokeswoman Alice Herrington.

Federal agencies were at the airport conducting an investigation, which included interviewing passengers and flight crew, Glaspie said.

Maj. Barry Venable, a spokesman for NORAD, said the FAA makes the decision if an airplane needs military assistance.

"They are responsible for domestic air space control," said Venable, who declined to discuss specifics, citing security issues.

NORAD decides whether to use aircraft that are sitting on alert at an air base or a combat air patrol plane already flying, he said.

First-time flier Helen Marchio, 33, was waiting for her flight to leave for Chicago when she saw the plane accompanied by two fighter jets.

She said she could see bomb-sniffing dogs around the plane after it landed.

Marchio said she asked airport officials what was going on and was told that everything was all right.

"You wouldn"t bring out bomb-sniffing dogs if everything was OK," she said.