Stranded plane was the only one to be re-routed

Passengers were unable to leave the plane for the six hours it sat on the tarmac at the Air Force base. Photo / supplied

An international flight that diverted to a military airbase after trying to land at Auckland in bad weather was the only plane to be re-routed during Saturday's storm, forcing more than 260 passengers on board to an extra six hours in their seats.

Cathay Pacific flight CX197 flew to Ohakea Air Force base in the Manawatu after a failed attempt to land at Auckland Airport around midday on Saturday because of wild weather and thunderstorms.

It has now emerged it was the only flight to be re-routed because of bad weather on Saturday, and the decision was made by the pilot, not air traffic control.

Passengers were unable to leave the plane for the six hours it sat on the tarmac at the Air Force base. Photo / supplied

The diversion meant the 266 passengers were treated to an additional six hours on board the Airbus A340-313 from Hong Kong, when the pilots and cabin crew were barred from flying because they'd been in the air too long. The airline was forced to charter an Air New Zealand eight-seater plane to ferry a replacement crew for the return flight to Auckland.

The passengers and crew had to wait on board because there were no customs and immigration facilities at the airbase. The plane eventually landed at Auckland at 7.30pm.

A spokeswoman from Airways, which controls all air movement in New Zealand airspace, said it was not an air traffic control decision to re-route the flight.

"They asked to be re-routed," she said.

All other flights were placed into "the holding pattern", meaning they circled around Auckland Airport until it was safe to land.

Cathay Pacific said the pilot made the decision to divert because of difficult weather conditions at the time.

In a statement, Brian Tsoi, country manager for Cathay Pacific, New Zealand and Pacific Islands, said: "As CX197 was approaching Auckland International Airport on Saturday, there was an unexpected deterioration in weather conditions, which had not been forecast. This weather situation was a combination of heavy rain, very low, thick cloud base, and wind shear.

"The pilot made one attempt to land, and then flew a circuit around Auckland. However, for safety reasons which were based on the deteriorating weather conditions, he then made a decision to fly on to the RNZAF Base at Ohakea, which is the alternate airport for international airlines if it is not possible to land at Auckland International Airport."

Yesterday, frustrated passengers spoke of the long wait at Ohakea stuck inside the aircraft, but praised staff for their handling of the situation.

Among those on board was Good Samaritan Lucy Knight's son Oscar Thomas, one of 12 Rosmini College students returning from a two-week school trip to France.

The pilot told passengers "a large gust of wind hit the side of the plane when attempting to land in Auckland", Mr Thomas said.

Another student from the North Shore boys' school, Connor Penman, 14, said passengers had stayed calm throughout the ordeal.

"I had contacted my family and was not happy that I had to wait another six hours after the 22 hours of flying that I had just done," he said in an email.

"My solution to the crisis was to eat a huge bar of chocolate and sleep for five hours. It worked fairly well."