An Aer Lingus flight with the taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Micheál Martin on board had to make an emergency U-turn after it struck a bird.
The flight to New York took off from Dublin Airport at about 17:00 local time on Wednesday.
It returned to Dublin at about 18:30.
A spokesperson for Aer Lingus said there had been a bird strike shortly after take-off.
The airline has apologised to customers for the inconvenience.
The flight was rescheduled for later on Wednesday evening.
Mr Martin is due to address the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Thursday.
