Wintry weather disrupts Napier flights to Wellington, Auckland

People at Hawke's Bay Airport wait for flights, with flights to and from Wellington cancelled and flights to and from Auckland delayed due to the bad weather. Photo/Duncan Brown

The heavy rain and southerly gales caused havoc for travellers yesterday as flights in and out of Napier were cancelled and delayed.

All Air New Zealand flights from Napier to Wellington and Wellington to Napier were cancelled and all flights to and from Auckland were delayed throughout the day.

An Air New Zealand spokesman said other services operated for the duration of the day but there were delays due to disruption as a result of weather elsewhere on the network.

All Jetstar flights from Napier to Auckland ran but were delayed 20 to 30 minutes but all of the flights that connected in Auckland, which were bound for Wellington, bar one were cancelled.

JQ263 left Auckland an hour and a half behind schedule, leaving at 5:32pm and landing in Wellington at 6:48pm.

Yesterday Wellington recorded wind speeds of up to 109km/h at the airport and up to 167km/h at Mt Kaukau.

Flights leaving this morning to and from the capital, up to Auckland and down to Christchurch were all scheduled as on time last night.

Travellers are advised to check with their airline for up to date information.