Three fire crews are on standby at Hamilton Airport after reports of smoke in the cockpit of an inbound Air New Zealand plane.
A spokesperson for Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) told Newshub that firefighters are responding to reports of smoke in the plane's cockpit.
According to Flight Radar, the flight - bound for Wellington - was NZ5813, an ATR 72-600 aircraft. Roughly 20 minutes in, just north of Taumarunui, the plane turned back to Hamilton.
Data from the global flight tracking service showed the plane landed at Hamilton Airport at around 8:30am.
In a statement to Newshub, Air New Zealand confirmed that flight NZ5813 returned to Hamilton after an indication of an electrical fault.
"The flight landed safely just after 8.30am, and customers were immediately disembarked through the main door once the aircraft was on the ground as a precaution," the spokesperson said.
"Customers are being accommodated on alternative services.The aircraft is now being checked following the incident."
