John Key delayed by heavy fog

Photo / file

Bad weather in the North Island has temporarily delayed the Prime Minister's campaign day in Rotorua.

Heavy fog enveloped Auckland this morning, delaying domestic flights in and out of Auckland Airport for an hour and a half.

Mr Key's flight from Auckland was delayed by about an hour because of fog - and the plane only managed to touch down at the other end after two aborted landings because of bad weather in Rotorua.

Mr Key managed to make it to his first appointment, an indoor netball tournament, for a short time before getting back on schedule.

His first plan was to attend a junior soccer tournament, which was cancelled because of inclement weather.

An Auckland Airport spokeswoman said heavy fog meant the runway was out of action for domestic arrivals and departures from 7.30am until 9am, when all services resumed after the fog cleared.

Regional flights to Tauranga, Rotorua, Wanganui, Paraparaumu, Palmerston North, Wellington, Whakatane and Bay of Islands were delayed.

The backlogue of flights would be cleared soon, the spokeswoman said.

- with additional reporting by Claire Trevett