Heathrow Chaos: Around 1,351 flights to and from London’s Heathrow Airport faced delays or cancellations after the airport shut down operations on Friday due to a power outage. Around 37 flights from India felt the impact of the incident. Heathrow airport is a key gateway between India and Europe. On Friday morning, the airport operator stated on X: “Due to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport, Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage.
To maintain the safety of passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will remain closed until 11:59 PM on 21 March. Authorities advise passengers not to travel to the airport and to contact their airline for further information. According to the flight tracking website Flightradar24, at least 1,351 flights to and from the airport experienced disruptions.
If your flight gets canceled, you have a few options. You can get a full refund, including taxes and fees, within seven days. Alternatively, you can choose to rebook on the next available flight or pick a later date that works best for you.
What Exactly Happened
On Thursday, an electrical sub station near London’s Heathrow airport experienced a power outage due to a fire at an electrical substation that supplies it power. Thousands of homes remained without power after two explosions and a fire at the substation in Hayes. However, authorities issued a mass evacuation order in west London. According to the BBC, the fire at the substation in Hayes left more than 4,900 homes without power, and officials evacuated 150 people from surrounding properties. No flights landed at Heathrow, and planes already on the way diverted to other airports or returned to their origin. There have been no reports of any injuries and the fire was under control.
🚨 BREAKING: Heathrow Airport says it will be closed all day due to significant power outage caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation
“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances” pic.twitter.com/jeqEqb8BX6
---Advertisement---— Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) March 21, 2025
Electrical Substation?
Substations play an important part in the UK’s national electricity grid. Transmission substations and distribution substations handle electricity transmission in the area, including the airport. When transmission substations handle high-voltage electricity transmission over long distances, distribution substations bring down the voltage for local distribution to homes and businesses. The transformer, which increases and lowers the flow of electricity within the electrical substation in Hayes, caught fire, resulting in all the turmoil.
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport, the busiest in Europe, connects passengers to over 230 destinations across nearly 90 countries. In February 2025 alone, 5.7 million passengers traveled through Heathrow, bringing the total to 84.1 million over the past year (March 2024 – February 2025). The airport currently operates with two main runways—the northern runway stretching 3,902 meters and the southern runway at 3,658 meters. However, with Heathrow running at 99% capacity, it faces tough competition from other major European hubs.
Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt each have four runways, while Amsterdam Schiphol boasts six. To stay competitive and support trade and economic growth, Heathrow plans to submit a proposal for a third runway this summer, following recent approval from the British government. Additionally, reports indicate that Heathrow handles around 475,000 total aircraft movements annually. More than 90,000 people work at the airport, making it the UK’s largest single-site employer.
