No planes will fly in and out of Heathrow Airport until midnight on Friday due to a fire at a nearby electricity substation.
The fire broke out just before midnight on Thursday, leaving the airport with a “significant power outage” and “no choice but to close”.
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At least 1,300 flights will be affected, including 120 that were already in the air in the early hours of Friday.
Here’s what we know so far.
What do we know about the fire?
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Fire crews were called to reports of a transformer on fire at North Hyde substation in Hayes, west London, at 11.23pm, the London Fire Brigade (LFB said).
Drone footage from above the site, which is around 1.5 miles from the airport, shows huge flames billowing across the skyline with thick black smoke.
About 150 nearby homes were evacuated with 29 people “led to safety” and a 200m cordon in place, LFB said.
The cause of the fire is not yet known.
National Grid said 62,000 homes lost power, but it had restored power to all but 4,900 by the early hours of Friday.
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Flight cancelled? These are your rights
Just after 2am, Heathrow Airport issued a statement confirming it was “experiencing a significant power outage” due to the fire.
“Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored,” it said.
“To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we have no choice but to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025.
“We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens.”
Some 70 firefighters and 10 fire engines were sent to the scene from nearby stations, with LFB warning it would be a “prolonged incident”.
Just after 8am on Friday it said the flames were “under control”.
How many flights are cancelled?
Flights usually begin landing and taking off from Heathrow at 5am after the mandated overnight quiet period.
Although the exact number of flights impacted has not yet been confirmed, according to Flightradar24, at least 1,351 were scheduled to go in and out of Heathrow on Friday.
Around 120 planes that had already taken off from destinations around the world were turned around or diverted to other airports – including Gatwick, Shannon in Ireland, and Paris.
Gatwick Airport said it was “supporting by accepting diverted flights as required” and is operating “as normal today”.
Stansted said in a statement: “We have capacity for a small number of diverts but as yet we haven’t received any requests.”
A spokesperson for Birmingham Airport said none of its flights will be delayed or cancelled due to Heathrow diversions, adding: “We will assist with landing any diverted aircraft during the Heathrow closure today and work with those LHR airlines to repatriate their customers upon arrival into Birmingham.”
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Edinburgh Airport advised all British Airways (BA) passengers flying from there this morning not to travel to the airport.
BA, the largest operator at the airport, said in its statement: “Due to a power outage in the London Heathrow area, London Heathrow Airport is currently closed.
“As a result, customers due to travel from Heathrow on Friday are advised not to travel to the airport until further notice.
“This will clearly have a significant impact on our operation and our customers and we’re working as quickly as possible to update them on their travel options for the next 24 hours and beyond.”
How busy is Heathrow normally?
Heathrow is Europe’s busiest airport – and among the top 10 busiest in the world.
Last year it had 83.9 million passengers, with a plane taking off and landing every 45 seconds.
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The airport is the base for 90 airlines, including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and Lufthansa.
It connects London with 230 destinations across 90 countries. The most popular destination is New York.
Its two runways compare with four at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt – and six at Amsterdam Schiphol.
More than 90,000 people work at Heathrow – making it the UK’s largest single-site employer.
What are my rights if I’ve been affected?
Your flight is covered by UK law if it departs from or arrives at a UK airport, operates on a UK or EU airline, or arrives at an EU airport on a UK airline.
If your flight is cancelled, the airline must either give you a refund or book you on an alternative flight.
You can get your money back for all parts of a ticket you haven’t used, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says.
While you are unable to fly to your destination, your airline is obliged to provide you with:
• A reasonable amount of food and drink;
• A means for you to communicate (often by refunding the cost of your calls);
• Accommodation, if you are re-routed the next day;
• Transport to and from the accommodation (or your home, if you are able to return there).
