Virgin Australia plane grounded due to bird strike in Albury

A spokeswoman for the airline said the plane was "declared serviceable and cleared for departure this morning". 

"All remaining guests from yesterday's flight were recovered on Virgin Flight VA 1175 which departed at 10.15am," the spokeswoman said. 

UPDATE SATURDAY: The Virgin Australia plane which was impacted by bird strike in Albury earlier on Saturday has been grounded permanently following an engineer assessment.

The Albury to Sydney flight was cancelled mid-afternoon after hitting three galahs on entry into Albury earlier in the day.

A total of 19 passengers were unable to be found a replacement flight on Saturday.

"As per standard operating procedures, the aircraft was reviewed by an engineer, who found the aircraft not to be serviceable," a Virgin Australia spokesperson said.

"The majority of passengers were re-accommodated on another flight this afternoon.

"Remaining passengers will be re-accommodated on a flight tomorrow morning.

"The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is always the highest priority."

The airline expects the damaged plane to be back in the air on Sunday.

EARLIER: A VIRGIN Australia plane has been grounded at Albury Airport on Saturday due to a bird strike, leading to lengthy delays for passengers heading to Sydney.

The plane is believed to have struck a galah on landing in Albury and an engineer had to travel from Sydney to assess the plane for any major damage.

"We can confirm that the departure of Virgin Australia flight VA1175 has been delayed, following the aircraft being affected by a bird strike this morning on landing," a Virgin Australia spokesperson said.

"As per standard operating procedures, the aircraft is awaiting review by an engineer before being cleared for departure.

"The majority of passengers have been moved onto another flight this afternoon, and we hope to have remaining guests on their way to their destination as soon as possible.

"The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is always the highest priority."

One passenger who contacted The Border Mail said: "Passengers left stranded and devastated as many miss important connecting flights with an $8 food voucher for a five hour wait."

In 2014, a Virgin Australia plane was grounded indefinitely due to a bird strike.

In the same year, pilots landing in Albury were warned about the increasing threat of hitting an ibis with four bird strikes reported to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.