UK’s Heathrow airport closed after fire sparks power outage, flight chaos

Britain’s Heathrow Airport said it would be closed all of Friday after a huge fire at a nearby electrical substation wiped out power, disrupting flight schedules around the world.

The London Fire Brigade said around 70 firefighters were tackling the blaze in the west of London, which caused a mass power outage at Heathrow, Europe’s busiest and the world’s fifth-busiest airport.

Orange flames could be seen shooting into the sky. The fire brigade said the cause of the fire was not known.

According to flight tracking website FlightRadar24, scores of flights were already being diverted to other airports, with Qantas Airways sending its flight from Perth to Paris and a United Airlines New York flight heading to Shannon, Ireland.

Some flights from the US were turning around mid-air and returning to their point of departure.

A United Airlines flight from San Francisco was due to land in Washington DC rather than London. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic diverted flights to nearby Gatwick.

“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23h59 on 21 March,” Heathrow airport said in a post on X, adding that passengers were advised not to travel to the airport.