A Bermuda-bound flight out of Toronto was immediately ordered to land as news broke that two hijacked planes had reduced the twin towers of New York's World Trade Center to fiery rubble yesterday.

Air Canada flight 942 was diverted to Norfolk, Virginia - the closest available airport when news broke from New York. The plane landed safely with 128 passengers aboard at 11.21 a.m. Bermuda time.

Air Canada representative Veronica DeSilva said yesterday that all the Bermuda-bound passengers were being lodged at a Norfolk hotel.

Ms DeSilva said Air Canada has accounted for all its aircraft and crew and she was awaiting further information on when flights might resume.

The Bermuda flight left Toronto's Pearson International Airport at 8.25 a.m. yesterday - just half an hour before the first plane reportedly blazed a hole in the side of the New York office towers.

It was due to arrive in Bermuda at 12.10 p.m.

Passengers at the airport in Bermuda waiting to board AC 947 - the Toronto return leg of the grounded flight - were told the plane had been diverted and all flights were grounded.

Contact numbers were taken for the outgoing passengers and they were advised to call the airline at 293-1777 for updates on the situation relating to the flight, The Royal Gazette was told.

Ms DeSilva said the local Air Canada office was advised that Air Traffic Control in the US closed the air space forcing the Bermuda flight to land.

Originally, Air Canada was to be updated in three hours, but then the situation in the United States "got worse", Ms DeSilva said, and air space was closed completely.

The Bermuda flight's US landing was unique. The airline re-routed flights in the air bound for the US back to Canada while other international flights continued to their destination, the airline said in a press statement yesterday morning.

And the US Federal Aviation Administration said it was diverting US-bound transatlantic flights to Canada.