Passengers around the world are facing major delays and cancellations after London’s Heathrow Airport was shut down due to a massive fire at a nearby electrical substation. The blaze, which broke out at around 11 p.m. GMT on Thursday, knocked out the airport’s primary and backup power supplies, forcing the cancellation or diversion of over 1,300 flights.
Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport and the fifth-busiest globally, had been scheduled to handle 291,000 passengers across 1,351 flights on Friday. Instead, the closure brought global aviation to a near standstill, with ripple effects expected to continue for days.
The fire was reportedly fueled by 25,000 litres of transformer cooling oil, sending towering flames and thick black smoke into the night sky. London Fire Brigade managed to control the blaze by early morning, using white foam to douse the transformer. No injuries have been reported.
‘No Power, No Flights’: Airlines and Passengers Left in the Dark
With power systems down, Heathrow terminals were plunged into darkness, and dozens of long-haul flights had to turn back mid-air. British Airways, the airport’s main operator, had 341 flights scheduled to land, while a total of 77 airlines were set to operate 669 flights throughout the day.
Airlines scrambled to reroute passengers, with EasyJet and Ryanair deploying extra capacity. However, prices around Heathrow soared, with hotels charging up to £500 per night—five times the usual rate. Thousands of passengers, including tourists, students, and families, were stranded and seeking urgent alternatives.
“This is more than an inconvenience. It’s a failure of critical infrastructure,” said aviation analyst Henry Harteveldt. Some industry leaders likened the scale of disruption to the 2010 volcanic ash cloud crisis that grounded 100,000 flights.
Calls for answers as experts question backup failures
UK Energy Minister Ed Miliband confirmed there was no sign of foul play, but acknowledged the fire had not only shut down the primary supply but also disabled the backup systems. Engineers are now racing to activate a third-level contingency.
Power supply specialists have described the fire as highly unusual. Nicholas Rigby, of NRG Management Consultancy, stated: “The entire substation had to be shut down to contain the fire. That said, there should be redundant systems. Why they failed is the real question.”
A Heathrow spokesperson said the airport will remain closed until midnight on Friday, with no clear timeline for full-service restoration. Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Authority and government agencies have launched an urgent inquiry into how a single fire could paralyse one of the world’s critical transport hubs.
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