Bad weather has delayed the family of Australian actor Heath Ledger, which is due to touch down in Melbourne this afternoon from from Los Angeles en route to their home town of Perth.
Ledger's father Kim, mother Sally Ledger Bell and sister Kate were among a group of about 15 family members who flew out of Los Angeles last night for Australia.
The family was expected to touch down in Melbourne this morning.
But a Melbourne Airport spokeswoman said the flight had been diverted to Sydney due to bad weather in Melbourne.
The plane was unable to land in Melbourne as scheduled at 9.30am and had gone to Sydney to refuel, the spokeswoman said.
The Sydney Airport website says the flight had landed there at 10.05am and was due to leave for Melbourne at 10.45am.
A Qantas spokeswoman said low cloud had caused the flight to be diverted from Melbourne.
"They definitely couldn't land there because of low cloud," the spokeswoman said.
The Ledgers are this afternoon expected to catch a flight from Melbourne to Perth, where it is believed they will hold a private funeral later this week.
Several other flights appear to have been delayed, but it is not clear whether that is also due to bad weather.
The family was escorted into Los Angeles international airport's Tom Bradley Terminal by Los Angeles police, private security staff and Australian consular staff.
A photographer was pushed against the wall by a private minder as the family entered the crowded terminal.
Ledger, 28, was found dead in his rented Manhattan apartment on January 22.
He is expected to be be buried in the Ledger family plot, near his grandparents, at Perth's Karrakatta cemetery.
A post-mortem examination conducted the day after Ledger's death has failed to determine the cause of death, but speculation soon turned to drug abuse.
Six different anti-anxiety and sleeping prescription drugs were found in the SoHo apartment, but police said there were no illegal drugs.
A toxicology report is expected to be released this week.
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