Home Heathrow closed all day after nearby fire causes power outage

Heathrow closed all day after nearby fire causes power outage

· March 21, 2025 · 0 Comment
  2. João da Silva
  3. Business reporter in Singapore
  4. Air India says its London-bound AI129 flight is returning to Mumbai.
  5. Another flight – AI161 from Delhi – is being diverted to Frankfurt. All other remaining Air India flights to and from London Heathrow on 21 March have been cancelled.
  6. The company’s flights to London Gatwick remain unaffected.
  7. “We will update about resumption of operations as soon as we have more information,” a statement from the airline said.
  10. Charlotte Gallagher
  11. Reporting from Heathrow
  12. Heathrow will be closed until midnight on Friday but the airport is warning of “significant disruption” in the days after that.
  13. Aircraft and crews will be in different locations as flights have been diverted or in some cases not even left a runway.
  14. It will also have to deal with the huge influx of passengers when the airport reopens.
  17. National Grid says in a post on X that the fire at North Hyde substation has “damaged equipment, leading to a loss of power supply in the area”.
  18. “We are working at speed to restore power supplies as quickly as possible and will provide an update as soon as we can,” the statement says.
  19. As we previously reported, energy supplier Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, which operates the substation, says that the site has been evacuated and it is tending to the safety of local residents and its staff.
  22. We’re now hearing from the London Fire Brigade that the blaze at the electrical substation in Hayes has not been extinguished.
  23. “Part of a transformer within the substation remains alight,” an update on social media from the London Fire Brigade says.
  24. Firefighters are “working tirelessly” to bring the blaze under control, the statement adds. “As we head into the morning, disruption is expected to increase, and we urge people to avoid the area wherever possible.”
  25. Ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters have been dispatched to the site. The cause of the fire remains unclear at this point.
  28. Suranjana Tewari
  29. Asia business reporter
  30. I was booked to fly into Heathrow from Singapore tonight.
  31. I am travelling alone with my six-year-old and so opted for an overnight flight to hopefully allow the 15-hour flight to go a bit quicker.
  32. I contacted Qantas to check if the airline is diverting my flight but it said there has been no word yet. Separately, Qantas has told the BBC my flight is likely to be impacted.
  33. I’ve been checking alternative flights to Gatwick or Manchester to see if I can get ahead of any delays.
  34. There are few direct options. But Singapore Airlines to London Gatwick for two of us is costing about $3,000 (£2,320) at this late stage! My travel insurance will only cover the cost of my original flight, and only if the airline sends us written proof that it is cancelling or diverting.
  35. In the last few minutes, I’ve received the below message saying Qantas looks forward to welcoming me onboard.
  36. I’m sceptical as any delays at busy airports like Heathrow are likely to last for days. But I guess I’ll take my chances by heading to the airport in the coming hours – along with a very sleepy child.
  40. Peter Hoskins
  41. Business reporter, BBC News Singapore
  42. London Gatwick Airport has just shared a new statement confirming it is offering support by “accepting diverted flights as required”.
  43. “Flights are operating from London Gatwick as normal today,” the airport added.
  44. It said it has already “accepted seven diverted flights originally scheduled to land at Heathrow”.
  47. Rob Corp
  48. Live reporter
  49. The first overnight flights usually begin landing at Heathrow at around 04:30 GMT – but with the airport closed those jets are now diverting to other cities.
  50. Some early arrivals have landed at London Gatwick to the south of the capital, but that is the UK’s second busiest airport and its own morning rush is about to begin so capacity there could be an issue
  51. Looking at tracking site FlightRadar24 I can see some Heathrow inbounds are now diverting to airports on the continent.
  52. Two flights from Doha and Bahrain in the Gulf have just landed at Frankfurt while a Cathay Pacific service from Hong Kong has diverted to Amsterdam.
  53. Some passengers may be slightly better off if their aircraft diverts to Manchester – as has an early British Airways service from Nairobi in Kenya.
  54. But the more diversions the greater the knock on effects as airlines see their aircraft and crews scattered across Europe.
  57. Koh Ewe
  58. Live page reporter, Singapore
  59. British Airways, whose main hub is Heathrow, has echoed the advise of the airport for customer not to travel until further notice.
  60. It said the outage “will clearly have a significant impact on our operation and our customers”.
  61. “We’re working as quickly as possible to update them on their travel options for the next 24 hours and beyond,” it said in a statement.
  62. “Where possible, we’re redirecting inbound flights already on their way to Heathrow to other UK airports.”
  65. Image source, PA Media
  66. A little bit more about the major fire at the substation which has caused the issues.
  67. More than 16,300 homes have lost power in a large-scale outage cause, energy supplier Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said on X.
  68. It has appealed to anyone who is medically dependent on electricity and who needs help to get in touch with the power company.
  71. We do not have any official figures on how many flights to and from Heathrow are going to be cancelled today, but flight tracker FlightRadar24 estimates it could be at least 1,351.
  72. “That doesn’t include any flights that might be cancelled or delayed due to aircraft being out of position,” the tracker added.
  73. It is understood least 120 flights in the air bound for Heathrow will have to divert due to the airport closure.
  74. Heathrow is the UK’s largest airport, handling around 1,300 landings and take-offs each day. A record 83.9 million passengers passed through its terminals last year.
  77. Thomas Mackintosh
  78. Live reporter
  79. I am among a few bleary-eyed Scots who attended the match against Greece a few hours ago but were up before sunrise for a flight to Heathrow.
  80. We had cleared passport control and security in good time and as we were queuing for some breakfast a staff member shouted, “all flights to Heathrow cancelled”. A glance at the departure board confirmed that was the case.
  81. When we asked why, we were told all flights to Heathrow today will be cancelled due to a fire. We were then huddled among 50 other passengers and walked back through passport control to re-enter Greece.
  82. Plenty of passengers around us were planning on getting a connecting flight up to Edinburgh, Glasgow or Aberdeen. They’ve been looking at re-booking via other European cities for who knows how much cost at this last minute.
  83. But it does give an idea of the knock-on impact to people’s travel plans. Staff at Athens have been very helpful, they’ve given us vouchers and clear directions. Systems are being updated so for now – like many others – we wait.
  87. João da Silva
  88. Business reporter in Singapore
  89. Australia’s flagship Qantas airline has told BBC News that it is “closely monitoring” the situation at London Heathrow.
  90. Its QF9 Perth-London flight which is currently in the air is being diverted to Paris. Flight QF1 which has departed from Singapore will also be diverted from London to the French capital.
  91. Two other flights scheduled to depart London today, QF2 and QF10, are likely to be affected, according to the airline.
  92. Qantas says it will be reaching out directly to its customers whose flights have been affected.
  95. Peter Hoskins
  96. Business reporter, BBC News Singapore
  97. Image source, Getty Images
  98. Some details on flight cancellations are starting to emerge.
  99. US-based carrier United Airlines told the BBC that “following the closure, seven United flights returned to their origin or to other airports”.
  100. “Friday flights to London Heathrow are being cancelled,” a spokesperson added.
  101. They also said the airline is working with its customers to offer alternative travel options.
  104. Here is some footage filmed at the substation near Heathrow Airport. As we have already mentioned, it is not yet known what caused the fire.
  105. Media caption,
  106. Watch: Large fire breaks out near Heathrow Airport
  109. This fire at the substation this morning happened about a mile and a half north of Heathrow Airport in the town of Hayes.
  110. According to the London Fire Brigade, half of a transformer within the substation remains alight, with ten fire engines and at least 70 firefighters having been called out to the fire.
  111. “This will be a prolonged incident, with crews remaining on scene throughout the night,” said Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne.
  112. “The fire has caused a power outage affecting a large number of homes and local businesses, and we are working closely with our partners to minimise disruption.”
  113. The cause of the fire is not known at this time.
  116. We are starting to get some reaction through from other airports and airlines about how they are reacting to the closure.
  117. A short time ago the BBC News received this statement through from Gatwick Airport:
  118. “We are aware of the situation at Heathrow Airport today and stand ready to support as required. Flights are operating from London Gatwick as normal today.”
  121. Here is the full statement from Heathrow Airport, posted to its social media a short time ago:
  122. “Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage across the airport due to a large fire at a nearby electrical substation.
  123. Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored.
  124. To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025.
  125. We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens.
  126. We will provide an update when more information on the resumption of operations is available.
  127. We know this will be disappointing for passengers and we want to reassure that we are working as hard as possible to resolve the situation.”
  130. A fire has broken out at a west London substation, leading to a power outage that has left Heathrow airport without electricity.
  131. That means Heathrow – the UK’s largest airport – will be shut down until midnight on Friday, likely impacting hundreds of flights and thousands of passengers.
  132. A spokesperson has said there is “no clarity on when power may be reliably restored”, adding that staff were “working as hard as possible to resolve the situation”.
  133. The fire in Hayes has also left thousands of homes without power and caused around 150 people to be evacuated from surrounding properties.
  136. Welcome to our coverage of an incident which has resulted in Heathrow Airport closing all day.
  137. In a statement, the airport said it is experiencing a “significant power outage” because of the fire.
  138. “To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23:59 on 21 March,” it said.
  139. “Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport and should contact their airline for further information. We apologise for the inconvenience.”
  140. Stay with us for what is likely to be a day of major travel disruption.

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