Jacinda Ardern says she's "still laughing" after meeting a woman wearing a mask of her face on her flight.
The Prime Minister took to the sky on Air NZ on Monday morning, only for the person in front to turn around and confront Ardern with her own grinning visage.
"When the person in front of you on the plane turns around to say good morning… still laughing," she wrote on Facebook.
The Prime Minister topped her post off by adding an emoji of a face laughing so hard it was crying.
Ardern was praised for her sense of humour and leadership of New Zealand through the COVID-19 crisis in the comments.
"This was SO funny and inspirational, I love it when politicians show their openness and their joy! Keep laughing, the world needs more of it!" one person wrote.
"I feel so privileged to live in a country where the PM is so unashamedly adored - as seen in the truly lovely look in that woman's eyes," another said.
"You are the owner of the laughter and smile, the magical morning of roses," a third added.
However the Prime Minister's post also drew criticism over her Government's handling of multiple social issues.
"That's great Jacinda but while your laughing I have a 2+ hour wait so that my sick baby can see a GP at Whitecross (sic). That plus the stress of the expense and the time taken off work is overwhelming. I've always been a supporter of you and Labour but this is getting out of hand and something needs to be done," one person commented.
"This all very cute (sic). What's not cute is the horrific abuse of animals in this country. The lack of Government funding into the SPCA and woeful laws that make prosecuting impossible and sentencing pathetic. How do we feel about live exports now that the Suez Canal is blocked and livestock are starving to death in horrific conditions?" another said.
The masks are available for purchase on Redbubble here.
