An Air New Zealand flight to Wellington made an emergency landing at Dunedin airport at 5.42pm, after a bird was sucked into its left engine.
An Air New Zealand spokesman said the birdstrike happened just after take off.
The plane was returned to Dunedin.
It landed without incident, and waiting fire and ambulance crews were not required.
The 115 passengers on the plane are being rebooked on later flights tonight.
