London’s Heathrow Airport closes after ‘catastrophic’ fire nearby causes power outage, prompting major travel disruption
A plane taking off from Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom.
Tim Ireland | Xinhua | Getty Images
London’s Heathrow Airport closed on Friday after a fire at a nearby electrical substation caused a power outage, airport officials said.
“Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage across the airport … Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored,” a Heathrow spokesperson said.
“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens,” the spokesperson said.
Ed Miliband, U.K. energy minister, described the fire as “catastrophic,” adding that the airport’s back-up generator had been affected by the blaze, according to Reuters. He said the National Grid was trying to use another back-up system to restore power to the airport.
Miliband said the cause of the fire was not yet known, but that foul play was not suspected.
Power cuts also affected about 16,000 homes around the airport. As of 8 a.m. GMT, electrical supply was restored to all but around 4,900, according to the U.K. energy company Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks.
The airport will remain closed until at least 11:59 p.m. local time on Friday.
Canceled and diverted flights
The closure of Europe’s busiest airport disrupted more than 120 flights that were in the air and forced to divert or return to their originating airports, according to flight-tracking site Flightradar24. The company said 679 flights are scheduled to land, and 678 flights are scheduled to take off, from Heathrow today.
Some 145,000 passengers could be affected by the closure, according to aviation-data firm Cirium.
A departure board shows a canceled Air Portugal flight from Singapore Changi Airport to London Heathrow Airport on March 21, 2025.
Roslan Rahman | Afp | Getty Images
United Airlines said seven of its flights had been diverted or returned to their originating airports due to the closure, adding that all flights to London Heathrow on Friday had been canceled.
“We are working with our customers to offer alternative travel options,” the carrier said in a statement.
Emirates, Air India, SAS and Aer Lingus canceled all flights to and from Heathrow on Friday, according to Reuters. Other flights are being diverted to London Gatwick Airport, according to NBC News.
Virgin Atlantic said it’s expecting multiple flight cancellations at Heathrow on Friday.
“We kindly ask customers not to call our contact centre due to high call volumes at this time and instead to check your flight status,” the airline said on its website. “If your flight is cancelled, we will email with your rebooking details.”
Heathrow Airport has an estimated 1,300 take-offs and landings at the airport per day, according to its website. Heathrow handled a record 83.9 million passengers last year — a nearly 6% increase from 2023.
Airport officials said they will update travelers “when more information on the resumption of operations is available.”
Travelers can check Heathrow Airport’s website or social media platforms, including X.
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