Hong Kong airport resumes normal service following chaotic weekend of delays and cancellations

Hong Kong's Airport Authority has seen off a third day of chaos at the city's International Airport as weather cleared following a weekend of delays and cancelled flights.

Thousands of passengers were stranded on Saturday and Sunday after the city was hit by heavy rainstorms that saw dozens of flights grounded as well as delays of up to four hours.

Despite a warning of a third day of delays, operations at the airport appeared to have resumed as normal on Monday morning, with only minor delays seen for some flights. A spokesman for the Airport Authority confirmed the operation of the airport had returned to normal as the weather on Monday had cleared.

However, Hong Kong's Observatory forecasts showers and isolated thunderstorms later on Monday.

The airport's woes began on Saturday when a red rainstorm warning was issued and continued well into Sunday as the backlog of delays and cancellations continued to mount. Passengers told the Post of long waits in the terminal, of their flights being held in queues, circling for up to 40 minutes before they could land. Some added that they were then forced to wait on the aircraft at the gate before being permitted to disembark as authorities struggled to find parking stands for aircraft.

The chaos led to questions about the airport's ability to cope with extreme weather, particularly in light of the plan to build a third runway. The chairman of the Legislative Council's transport panel pledged to investigate.