An Air New Zealand flight from Dunedin had an unplanned stop this morning after hitting birds shortly after takeoff.
Flight NZ680, bound for Wellington, was initially delayed by fog at Dunedin Airport.
A spokeswoman for Air New Zealand said once airborne, the plane "unfortunately encountered birds" and it was decided to divert to Christchurch where the aircraft could be inspected by engineers.
The 88 passengers continued their journey on another plane and arrived in Wellington later in the morning.
The spokeswoman said birds strikes were not uncommon, and pilots trained for this type of incident.
