A mechanical refuelling issue caused a minor scare at Tauranga Airport overnight.

Mount Maunganui firefighters were called to airport on Aerodrome Road at around 9.35pm after 50 litres of aviation fuel was left in the loading bay next to the runway.

Mount Maunganui firefighters at Tauranga Airport. Photos: Cameron Avery.

A Mount Maunganui Fire Brigade spokesperson says it was a minor spill caused by what appears to be a mechanical issue in where the fuel is stored.

Photos from a SunLive photographer show firefighters dealing with the spill while an Air NZ plane sits on the runway.

A fire spokesperson says the aviation fuel, unlike the aviation gas which vaporises, was already being contained by the airport's fire security team who had a spill kit set up.

'Our job was to make sure everyone was safe and to stop it going any further,” they said.

'We did that by using some special absorbent stuff. We cleaned up what we could and left some sand on it.

'It was pretty straight forward, but if it was the av gas or petrol it would have been a lot different.”