AA flight to San Francisco returns to Philadelphia due to bird strike shortly after takeoff

PHILADELPHIA -- An American Airlines flight heading to San Francisco from Philadelphia had to return to the airport due to a bird strike.

The plane struck some birds when taking off from the Philadelphia airport around 7 a.m. ET and returned to the airport shortly after, according to a PHL spokesperson.

The flight returned safely to PHL, according to the FAA, and there were no reported injuries.

"The aircraft is being taken out of service to be inspected by our maintenance team. Our team is working to get customers on their way to San Francisco (SFO) with a replacement aircraft as soon as possible. We thank our team members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding," American Airlines said in a statement.

Passengers deplaned normally after landing and were put on a replacement plane, set to arrive at SFO almost three hours late.

The FAA is investigating the incident.