UK weather forecast: Commuters warned of flight and rail chaos as Met Office issues fog warning

Flight passengers face cancellations and delays as a huge band of fog sweeps in over large parts of England forcing the Met Office to issue a severe weather alert.

Forecasters warned of possible chaos at airports and delays to rail journeys during the morning rush hour as they issued the alert, which covers most of the south.

The warning was put in place overnight and is not expected to be lifted until 10am on Friday morning, with drivers being told to be aware of low visibility on roads.

Parts of the East Midlands, Suffolk, South East and South West were all set to be affected by the poor weather conditions, according to the Met Office.

In its advice for travelling in fog, the weather service tells motorists to avoid travel wherever possible or to drive slowly with dipped headlights.

The latest warning comes after forecasters predicted that the mercury could soar to near-record levels across the UK this weekend.

Aboyne in Aberdeenshire hit the maximum temperature of 18.3C on Thursday afternoon, beating the previous high of 17.9C recorded in Aberdeen on February 22, 1897.

Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said the mild weather is set to continue, but it is unlikely to reach such a high in Scotland again this month.

"Over the next few days it'll be very mild temperatures, today is possibly the mildest for the next few days.

"It could be early next week until it's as mild again, though whether we'll see 18.3C is unlikely.

"So the mild theme is set to continue and it will be pleasantly spring-like through early next week."

Forecaster Steven Keats said the mercury is expected to reach at least 15C in London over Saturday and Sunday.

The warm weather is being caused by warm winds coming off the Canary Islands, where temperatures are in the low 20s.

“A bit of sunshine does help as well,” Mr Keats said. “It’s starting to get a bit of strength now compared to middle of winter.”