Auckland Airport (AKL) resumed operations and some flights after the airport was forced to shut down on the evening of January 27, 2023, due to excessive flooding that had entered the interior parts of the airport. The airport remained closed until the afternoon of January 28, 2023.
An estimated 9.8 inches of rainfall inundated Auckland on January 27, 2023. CNN reported that this amount was equivalent to an entire summer’s worth of rain.
AKL airport was shut down after a state of emergency was declared, leaving hundreds stranded. Video footage uploaded to YouTube by Stuff.nz showed travelers wading through water as they evacuated the airport.
It wasn’t just individual passengers who had to leave the airport. An Emirates A380 aircraft coming from Dubai was forced to turn back mid-flight after it was announced that AKL airport had closed.
AKL airport’s domestic terminal reopened mid-day on January 28, 2023, and a few international flights resumed on January 29, 2023.
The airport has anticipated that flight schedules will continue to see disruptions over the next few days, and has advised passengers to contact their individual airlines.