Heathrow closure latest: Counter-terrorism police investigating Heathrow fire - as No 10 says 'questions to answer'

Sky News

21-03-2025

Heathrow Airport is shut all day after an "unprecedented" fire hit a nearby substation. Counter-terrorism police are leading the investigation into the fire - with thousands of people hit by cancellations and power cuts. Live reporting by Ollie Cooper, Mark Wyatt and Kieren Williams
16:14:45
Heathrow: We can resume flights later today
Heathrow Airport has just issued a statement, saying it will restart some flights later today and hopes to run a full service tomorrow.
"Our teams have worked tirelessly since the incident to ensure a speedy recovery," it said.
"We're now safely able to restart flights, prioritising repatriation and relocation of aircraft."
Heathrow advises that passengers not travel to the airport unless the airline has told them to do so.
"We hope to run a full operation tomorrow and will provide further information shortly," the statement continues.
"Our priority remains the safety of our passengers and those working at the airport. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this incident."
16:09:01
What don't we know about Heathrow shutdown?
With power back to some parts of Heathrow, there seems to be a bit more optimism about getting the airport back online.
But there are still lots of unanswered questions, including:
What caused the fire at the substation?
When will Heathrow actually reopen?
What will the knock-on effect look like?
What is the total cost to the industry?
What lessons need to be learned from the chaos?
16:03:17
What you need to know this afternoon
It's just gone 4pm here in London - here's what you need to know if you're just joining us:
Heathrow Airport is closed until at least midnight after a fire engulfed a nearby electricity substation;
More than 1,350 flights have been disrupted, with Sky News told this could correspond to as many as 290,000 passengers;
Counter-terrorism police are leading the investigation into the blaze, with the cause unknown;
That fire is now under control;
In the past hour and a half, power appears to have been restored to Heathrow's Terminal 4;
But it's not clear when the airport will reopen;
British Airways' chief executive has warned there will be an impact for many days to come;
Ryanair - initially hailed for announcing "rescue flights! - has been accused of "profiteering from other people's misfortune" due to their prices;
European airline stocks have fallen and the cost to the industry is estimated at £20-£30m for airlines and the airport.
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15:47:01
Unclear when Heathrow will open again
We've just heard an update from home news correspondent Rachael Venables, who is at Heathrow.
Although power is back on in some parts of Heathrow, ultimately "that hasn't changed things at all" - flights are still grounded.
"We don't know at all how long it could take before the airport is back up and running," she says.
"The latest statement that we have from Heathrow Airport says we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored," Venables says.
"This morning they were telling us it would be shut at least until a minute to midnight tonight.
" We don't know that this is good news because it might be open a little sooner, or if this could knock on through into the weekend."
15:36:51
'Unprecedented situation' will have huge impact for 'many days to come', BA chief warns
We've had a statement from the chief executive of British Airways, the airline that's been worst-hit by the shutdown - it's responsible for 51% of flights affected.
Describing the situation as "unprecedented", Sean Doyle says there will be a "huge impact" over the coming days.
BA has been forced to "ground" its operations almost entirely.
Even when power is restored, he cautions, services won't just immediately resume as before.
"To give you an idea of the scale of disruption we face which we're working to minimise, today we were due to operate more than 670 flights carrying around 107,000 customers, with similar numbers planned over the weekend," he says.
Doyle adds that BA now have flight and cabin crews all over the world in locations they weren't planned to be.
So the airline now faces the difficult job of unpicking that mess.
15:35:01
Your stories: 'I'm stuck in Kuwait and start my new job on Monday'
Among the passengers stranded across the globe are Lloyd and his girlfriend in Kuwait.
"We were two hours into our Kuwait to Heathrow flight when it suddenly U-turned without explanation, causing panic and confusion."
The captain then informed them of the Heathrow fire and that they would be returning to Kuwait.
"We have no idea when we will be going back home, zero guidance, zero communication.
"We have luckily been put into an airport hotel and told to wait here until we get told to get on a plane.
"Very unsettling and frustrating. Not to mention I start a new job on Monday! Absolute shambles."
Meanwhile, traveller Lynne is stuck in Hong Kong.
She's been in the airport for 13 hours and says she has been given an unhelpful ultimatum by Cathay Pacific Airlines.
They offered to take her to any other European country tomorrow, but she would have to pay for her own way back to the UK from there, she claimed.
"They gave us no help at all, no food, no drinks."
15:25:01
Ryanair criticised over cost of 'rescue flights'
Earlier, we told you Ryanair had announced eight "rescue flights" for passengers affected by the Heathrow closure (see 8.45am post).
But people have been taking to social media to point out the relatively high cost of some of the flights.
Screenshots posted from the Ryanair app show the cheapest flight between Stansted and Dublin at £82.47, while the most expensive is listed at £268.72.
"Where's the £20 flights?" one wrote in the comments under Ryanair's announcement, while another accused the airline of "profiteering from other people's misfortune".
15:10:01
Number 10: 'Questions to be answered'
A bit of political reaction incoming now.
Number 10 has said there are questions to be answered about how the substation fire caused so much chaos at Heathrow.
It confirmed a "cross-government call" took place this morning.
"We expect those questions to be answered but our clarity right now is on this incident being appropriately dealt with," a spokesperson added.
They continued: "There is a fire still burning. So, there will be a time for that, but at the moment the priority is to deal with the incident."
It was also said that it "wouldn't be unreasonable to expect checks on resilience" were being carried out at other major airports.
14:55:04
Your stories: 'My diabetic son is stranded in Mumbai with limited insulin'
A worried Warwick mother has told Sky News she and her diabetic son are stranded in Mumbai with "very limited insulin".
Sharon and Raj were supposed to board a flight at 1.10pm to Heathrow with British Airways, but have received no emails or other communication from the airline since it was cancelled, she said.
"My son is type one diabetic and only has very limited insulin for the next few hours," said Sharon.
Sky News has contacted BA for comment.
'Outrageous' hotel prices
Meanwhile, more reports of hotel price gouging are rolling in.
Issac Wilson, whose flight to Hanoi, Vietnam, was cancelled, said a similar room to the one he booked for £69 tonight is being listed at £464 tomorrow.
"Many people seem to be travelling out of the area via bus and taxi as hotels are now at full capacity or have rooms being offered at outrageous prices."