A Qantas flight to Brisbane was forced to return to New Zealand following a technical issue.

Qantas flight QF120 left Auckland International Airport at 6.18am on Monday before returning more than three hours later at 9.30am.

An airline spokesman said the decision was made due to technical issues on the flight.

The airplane was an hour into the flight when it began to turn back.

The aircraft was forced to complete large circles in the air before it was allowed to land at the airport two hours later.

A flight path was shared online raising concerns among social media users.

‘Are these guys OK?’ one asked on Reddit. 

A replacement flight left the airport at 10.30am. 

A Qantas flight to Brisbane was forced to return to New Zealand following a technical issue

Qantas flight QF120 left Auckland International Airport at 6.18am on Monday before returning more than three hours later at 9.30am (stock image)

The flight is scheduled to arrive just before midday AEST. 

There are expected to be no further disruptions to the schedule, with the next flight due to depart Auckland International Airport at 6.25am tomorrow. 
 

More to come