The end of the foggy weather

The Auckland Harbour Bridge partially hidden by a foggy winter morning. Picture / Richard Robinson

A lone paddler cruises through the fog shrouding the Auckland Harbour Bridge at the weekend, but the sky over the region is expected to clear today, bringing relief after days of travel disruption.

Delayed and diverted flights at Auckland Airport affected thousands of international and domestic travellers.

Yesterday, three inbound international flights had to be diverted to Wellington and Christchurch. The 800 passengers flying in from San Francisco, Singapore and Honolulu were eventually flown back to Auckland once conditions improved in the late morning.

Fog on Friday caused 11 international flights to be diverted, and dozens of domestic flights were cancelled.

MetService weather ambassador Bob McDavitt said a prevailing easterly wind and the wet weather hitting the Auckland region today would stop the fog's recurrence. But he said the South Island, particularly Dunedin, would probably be plagued by frost and fog until Wednesday.

Dr Jim Salinger, a National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research senior climate scientist, said the fog in Auckland was unusual, and it was unlikely to recur as it did in Wellington last autumn.