London's Heathrow Airport will be closed all day on Friday, March 21st, after the fire caused a “severe” blackout. (Credit: Sergio Villeras via Storyful)
The UK government and London's Heathrow Airport have ordered that the blackouts have closed Europe's busiest air hubs for almost a day as airlines warned of further delays and cancellations.
The UK Energy Department said on Saturday it had asked the National Energy Systems operator to carry out an emergency investigation into the outage that raised questions about the country's critical infrastructure resilience, Reuters reported.
Heathrow said former Transport Minister Ruth Kelly, an independent board member, had undertaken a review of the airport's crisis management plans and its response to the incident, with the aim of increasing resilience.
The airport said on X's Sunday that “we are running a full schedule again today, with over 1,300 flights planned,” but the airline is rushing to make up for the lost time.
London's Heathrow Airport closure results in airline issues travel exemption
Firefighters members will be present at the scene following the massive fire at the Heathrow Electric Substation held in London, England on March 21, 2025. (Leon Neil/Getty Images)
“We appreciate your patience following the Friday closure due to an offsite power substation fire,” Post said.
British Airways, whose main hub is Heathrow, has promised a “nearly full” schedule for Sunday after Shawn Doyle warned that “major impact” would continue.
London's Heathrow Airport reopens after fire causes power outages
Europe's busiest UK Heathrow Airport was closed 24 hours a day early on March 21 after a massive fire at a power substation to a vast facility west of London, officials said. (Benjamin Kremel/AFP/Getty Images)
The major airlines are waiving fare changes for travelers affected by the London Heathrow airport Friday suspension.
According to Reuters, airports are the busiest in the world. It was scheduled to process flights 1,351 involving 291,000 passengers on Friday. However, a fire at a nearby electrical substation forced the plane to detour to other airports, and many long-haul flights returned to where they departed.
A fire at the power engine in Northhide, Hayes, has prompted a massive blackout at London's Heathrow Airport. (London Fire Force/Reuters/Reuters)
Police said they had not treated the incident as suspicious after the initial assessment, but the investigation remains ongoing.
London Firefighters The investigation said it would focus on electrical distribution equipment. About 70 firefighters and 10 engines responded to the fire at an electrical substation on Nessless Avenue, Hayes, just before midnight Thursday.
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“This is a very visible incident and our firefighters have made tireless efforts in challenging circumstances to control the fire as quickly as possible,” Deputy Director Pat Ghoulborn said in a statement.
Elizabeth Pritchett, Greg Norman, Daniella Genovese and Reuters of Fox Business contributed to this report.
