Four Tongans were reported to be onboard an Air New Zealand flight evacuating New Zealand citizens and foreign nationals, including Tongans from Wuhan, due to the novel coronavirus.

New Zealand Foreign Affairs and Trade in a status update, said today the flight was scheduled to land in Auckland at around 6:00pm today, after departing for China at 06:45NZT.

It confirmed a total of 190 assisted departure passengers boarded the plane in Wuhan.

This included 98 New Zealand citizens and permanent residents, 23 Australian citizens and 69 foreign nationals, mainly from Pacific Island countries including Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Kiribati, Tonga, Fiji and the Federated States of Micronesia.

It also reported that some passengers chose not to catch the flight and took themselves off the manifest earlier today. While, about 60 did not arrive at the airport (without notice).

One person was stopped from boarding by Chinese authorities at the health pre-screening check.

New Zealand MFAT advised that all passengers, apart from the Australian passengers will go into isolation in Whangaparaoa.

Australian passengers upon arrival into Auckland will be transferred directly to a flight to Australia.

Meanwhile, in Nuku'alofa, the Tongan Government has not yet released the list of these Tongan nationals, who boarded this evacuation flight. 

Slow moving also have been plans on any possible evacuation of four Tongan sports teams, who to date remain stranded in China.