A Qantas plane carrying Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex had to abort a landing attempt in Sydney on Friday afternoon after an aircraft on the runway below failed to get out of the way.

A Qantas media spokesperson confirmed the aircraft was forced to abort its landing and instead perform a “go-around” after another aircraft was still on the runway designated for the Royal couple’s plane.

The aircraft was able to land safely on its second attempt at 5:55pm (AEDT).

The royal plane aborts its landing at the last moment and clambers back into the sky. Photo: ABC

A spokesperson for Qantas was unable to confirm how far from the runway the aircraft was when it aborted the landing.

The Duke and Duchess will attend the Invictus Games closing ceremony on Saturday evening before heading to New Zealand.

Earlier, a choir had Meghan in tears of laughter as she and Prince Harry wrapped up their tour of Tonga.

The pair, who are expecting a child of their own in the northern hemisphere Spring, were serenaded by students at Tupou College.

They laughed when boys from the college sang about mosquitoes, complete with dance moves, at a ceremony to dedicate two forest reserves on the campus.

WATCH as flight carrying Duke & Duchess of Sussex aborts landing into Sydney. @qantas pilot says reason was another plane on the runway – and sees the positives… “You’ll get another great view of the harbour”. #RoyalTour #HarryandMeghan pic.twitter.com/TLWA76vIuO

— Simon Atkinson (@JournoAtko) October 26, 2018

But mosquito-born diseases have been raised before on this tour — the World Health Organisation identified recent cases of the zika virus in Tonga, and there have also been cases in Fiji in the past.

The Royal couple donned garlands of red flowers and a handmade wrap skirt called ta’ovala, given as a traditional sign of respect in the South Pacific nation.

Sydney Airport confirmed the incident, which happened as the Royal couple returned to Australia following a Pacific tour taking in Fiji and Tonga.

Video from on board the plane showed it descending to the runway before gaining altitude again.

They also met Tongan Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva at a government building, funded by China but named the St George Building, in the capital Nuku’alofa.

The country of some 170 reef-fringed tropical islands and 108,000 people is a former British colony.

School children later lined the route to the airport where the couple walked over a carpet of woven mats to their plane which left for Australia in the afternoon.

Earlier on their tour the couple visited Fiji, where enormous crowds showed up to welcome them.

-ABC