Thousands of demonstrators made their way to the city’s airport and managed to shut down the train shuttle service for six hours and barricade nearby roads.

The majority of flights were still able to operate, even if some passengers were unable to reach the airport – with only 25 services having to be cancelled on Sunday afternoon due to the protests, which were eventually cleared by riot police.

Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) said it was “aware that there have been calls for public activities in different parts of Hong Kong on 2 and 3 September” and advised passengers to “allow sufficient time to travel to the airport”.

The authority added: “Traffic between the airport and the city gradually resumed to normal in early evening. The AA has been working with relevant organisations to maintain flight operations to their best ability in order to clear the backlog of passengers.”

Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific added in a statement: “While certain public transportation services to HKIA have resumed, some delays are still expected. We suggest passengers allow enough time for additional travel prior to their flight’s scheduled departure.”