Air New Zealand's specially decorated Hobbit plane touched down in Wellington today – and the capital’s infamous wind caused havoc, blowing away the carpet rolled out especially to welcome the stars.
There was also a small issue with the airport's mobile airbridge which wouldn't line up properly with the 777-300ER - an aircraft that rarely visits the capital - stranding passengers for around 10 minutes.
Curious onlookers gathered at the airport's terminal building to get a sneak peak of Sir Peter Jackson and the stars of his film.
Even Sir Peter was aware of the gravitas of the situation, snapping photos of the crowd from his phone.
The Oscar-winning director didn't fly down from Auckland but came to the airport especially to greet his cast along with Andy Serkis, Elijah Wood and James Nesbit.
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