A domestic Air New Zealand flight failed to take off twice on Sunday after encountering two separate issues, including a suspected bird strike on the runway.

Flight NZ654 from Queenstown to Christchurch was cancelled yesterday afternoon after two attempts to depart were thwarted due to unrelated issues.

The pilot was forced to slam on the plane’s brakes as it prepared to take flight, due to a potential bird strike on the runway.

Passenger Rickie Modi told the Herald what appeared to be a normal take-off was halted halfway through the roll, when the pilot “applied the brakes strongly”.

He said some people on the flight had to hold the seat in front of them to stop themselves from falling forward.

Modi said the pilot came over the intercom after the abrupt halt, asking all passengers to remain seated.

“There was much confusion from all passengers and many nervous murmurs and laughs. After a few minutes, the pilot came back on the intercom stating that the aircraft had hit a flock of birds on its take-off roll and that they were going to decide if they would re-attempt take-off or go back to the gate,” Modi said.

The aircraft was then allegedly rolled back to the gate, with the pilots announcing it needed to be assessed for any damage and brake coolers applied to the brakes.

An hour later, the pilot attempted another take-off, but once again aborted during the roll.

“While taxiing to the other end of the runway, the pilot announced that they have experienced another ‘minor malfunction’ and was attempting to fix it in the cockpit while we waited on the runway,” Modi said.

“Passengers on board were a lot more uneasy and there were several very nervous conversations in the cabin.”

Planes parked at Queenstown Airport. Photo / Michael Thomas

He said after a couple of minutes on the runway, the pilot announced they were unable to fix the fault and the plane would return to the gate.

Once passengers disembarked, they were informed the flight had been cancelled and rescheduled for Monday.

Modi said there was “lots of frustration amongst passengers” but they were grateful for the cautious approach.

Air New Zealand head of flight operations Hugh Pearce confirmed flight NZ654 stopped on the Queenstown runway yesterday due to a “potential bird strike”.

“The aircraft returned to the gate for an engineering inspection while customers remained on board.”

Pearce said bird strikes were not uncommon and pilots are trained for these scenarios.

The plane was cleared after the initial incident but “an unrelated warning light came on” during the subsequent take-off.

“The aircraft returned to the gate for a further engineering inspection. As we couldn’t guarantee how long the inspection would take, the decision was made to cancel the flight,” Pearce said.

“We apologise to customers for the disruption and thank them for their patience while we work to get them to where they need to be.”

Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.