A PASSENGER plane was forced to circle above Bundaberg for almost two hours after the runway lights at the airport failed.

The Qantaslink flight from Brisbane approached Bundaberg in low cloud and darkness about 6.10pm on Saturday, when Captain Scott Davis announced to passengers there would be delays landing because he could not see any runway lights.

The pilots contacted QantasLink ground crew, who confirmed the blackout.

The De Havilland Dhc 8-300 started circling in a holding pattern while a Bundaberg Regional Council worker was summoned to fix the problem.

Capt Davis announced to passengers the lights were still out 35 minutes later and he would have to make another loop in the clouds.

"Qantas ground-staff have told us a council worker was on his way to the airport to change a fuse, it may be another 30 minutes until we can land," Davis said over the cabin intercom.

A passenger on the plane told the NewsMail the lights were still out 35 minutes later, when the captain told them the council worker was on his way to the airport to change a fuse. The announcement was met by laughter and ironic cheers on board by good-natured passengers.

One passenger reportedly asked how much fuel they had on board, but the cabin crew replied there was enough to fly back to Brisbane if necessary.

The flight, which was scheduled to arrive at 6.15pm, landed safely to cheers from relieved passengers just before 8pm.

QantasLink confirmed an aircraft had experienced delays at Bundaberg due to poor weather conditions and runway lights being temporarily switched off.

"QantasLink ground crews were able to work alongside local airport authority personnel to ensure the lights on the runway were restored as soon as possible," the spokesperson said.

A council spokeswoman said the runway lights had been "temporarily rectified"."They are looking at ongoing issues at the moment," she said.

"Planes can land, but they are looking at what caused the problem."

The NewsMail understands the council worker was called at home and summoned to the airport to turn on the lights, leading to the substantial delay in the aircraft landing.The council spokeswoman could not confirm if a runway light failure had happened previously.