Heathrow Airport Gradually Recovers Post-Power Outage Disruption

Heathrow Airport in London has resumed flights following a significant disruption caused by a fire at an electrical substation, which affected operations and power supplies on Friday.

On Saturday, flights were slowly returning to normal at Heathrow Airport, a crucial global travel hub, after a fire at an electrical substation had disrupted service for a large part of Friday. The incident impacted not only the airport but also resulted in power outages for thousands of homes in the surrounding area. The cause of the blaze is currently under investigation by local authorities, but preliminary reports indicate no signs of foul play.

British Airways, which operates the majority of flights from Heathrow, projected that around 85% of their flights would resume on Saturday. However, they warned travelers of likely delays impacting all passengers and announced the cancellation of flights on certain routes that offer more rebooking flexibility.

The fire triggered an extensive operational disruption, diverting over a thousand flights and affecting the travel plans of more than a quarter of a million passengers, according to aviation data firm Cirium. Although arrivals resumed Friday evening, a Heathrow spokesperson advised travelers to avoid coming to the airport unless instructed by their airline, emphasizing the ongoing potential for significant delays in the coming days as airlines worked to re-establish their schedules.

Reports from Flightradar24 indicated that flights from various international destinations, including Hong Kong, South Africa, and Brazil, were arriving at the airport early Saturday. Heathrow's chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, explained that while a backup transformer was functioning when the power outage occurred, it was insufficient to power the entire airport's operations. The London Fire Brigade faced challenges while extinguishing the fire due to the large amounts of cooling oil stored at the substation.

In a coordinated effort, Britain’s National Grid has since reconfigured the substation's network to restore power temporarily to Heathrow and other affected areas, paving the way for the gradual resumption of airport operations.