Simon Cowell crosses the Atlantic to welcome baby son Eric

Simon Cowell raced across the Atlantic Ocean on Friday and it was worth the effort: His son with girlfriend Lauren Silverman was born in New York on Valentine’s Day.

Cowell, 54, hopped a jet in London after getting word that Silverman was in labor and arrived in the Big Apple in the early afternoon. The baby weighed in at 6 pounds, 7 ounces, according to People and E! News.

“Very happy to say Eric was born at 17.45pm. Healthy and handsome,� Cowell tweeted Friday evening, explaining that the newborn was named after his own dad. “Lauren in great shape,� he added.

“He had a plane on standby for a week,� a source told E! News, which reported that Cowell had skipped out on “Britain’s Got Talent� auditions to make it for the birth.

Word that a baby was on the way for “The X Factor� creator broke last July to a degree of scandal, in that Silverman, the estranged wife of one of Cowell’s friends, was not yet divorced. For a while there was a chance Cowell would have to testify as part of the proceedings, but that evaporated when the divorcing couple struck a deal and started playing nice. Silverman’s split was final in early December.

Still, Cowell was on board with the role of daddy well before the legal stuff was settled.

“Things are changing in my life right now, for the better,� the “X Factor� judge told the BBC at a movie premiere in August.

“I’m proud to be a dad,� he said. “It’s something I hadn’t thought of before, but now I know I feel good about it.� He also referred to Silverman as a “special girl.�

It’s a first child for the former “American Idol� judge, and the second for Silverman, who has an 8-year-old boy with her ex, Andrew Silverman.

ALSO:

Is Bruce Jenner leaving ‘Keeping Up With the Kardashians’?

Nina Agdal, Lily Aldridge, Chrissy Teigen land SI Swimsuit cover

Khloe Kardashian defends sister Kendall Jenner’s see-through look

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs.