Heathrow Airport has resumed full operations on Saturday following a nearly day-long shutdown caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation, which forced extensive flight diversions and cancellations.
The incident, which affected Europe’s busiest air hub, has prompted the airport to order a probe into its crisis-management response.
British Airways, whose main hub is Heathrow, reported operating about 90% of its schedule on Saturday and promised a "near-full" schedule for Sunday. Chief executive Sean Doyle warned on Friday that the disruption’s "huge impact" could last for several days, as airlines continue to grapple with the fallout.
In response to the incident, Heathrow has tasked independent board member and former transport minister Ruth Kelly with reviewing its crisis-management plan. The goal is to bolster the airport’s resilience against future disruptions. Meanwhile, Britain’s energy ministry has commissioned the National Energy System Operator to urgently investigate the outage, raising broader concerns about the resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure.
The outage, which halted operations on what was expected to be a busy Friday with 1,351 scheduled flights and up to 291,000 passengers, forced long-haul flights to return to their departure points and resulted in numerous diversions. Although the vast majority of scheduled flights managed to depart successfully on Saturday, tens of thousands of passengers still face significant delays.
Aviation experts compared the scale of the disruption to the 2010 Icelandic volcanic ash cloud that grounded nearly 100,000 flights across Europe. Passengers voiced their frustration; one U.S. citizen, Amber Roden, described the situation as "absolutely insane" after several relatives experienced multiple flight cancellations and delays en route to her wedding.
Despite assurances from Heathrow chief executive Thomas Woldbye that "we don't expect any major amount of flights to be cancelled or delayed," airlines like Virgin Atlantic and Air India continue to navigate the disruption, promising near-full schedules as they recover from the incident.
The incident has reignited debate over the reliability of the UK's critical infrastructure, with industry leaders like Willie Walsh, head of IATA and former British Airways chief, criticizing what he called a clear planning failure by the airport. Major British newspapers have not held back in their criticism, with headlines in The Sun and Daily Mail describing the situation as a "humiliating fiasco" and "farcical," respectively.
Authorities are not treating the incident as suspicious, with police and the London Fire Brigade focusing on investigating the electrical distribution equipment. As Heathrow works to restore normal operations and rebuild confidence, the fallout from the outage is expected to have significant financial implications for the travel industry in the coming days.
Iraq’s election commission said on Saturday that objections to the parliamentary election results will not affect the preliminary outcomes....
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has firmly ruled out any possibility of U.S. military intervention in her country, stressing that security coop...
The Vatican returned 62 artefacts linked to Canada’s Indigenous peoples to the country’s Catholic bishops, describing the gesture as "a concrete s...
Japan urged China on Saturday to take "appropriate measures" after Beijing issued a warning to its citizens against travelling to Japan, amid an ongoi...
The Democratic Republic of Congo and the M23 rebel group signed a framework agreement on Saturday for a peace deal aimed at ending the ongoing conflic...
A man in his 40s has been arrested in West Sussex in connection with a cyberattack on Collins Aerospace that disrupted check-in systems across multiple European airports, including Brussels, Berlin and Heathrow.
UK authorities have raised an amber heat health alert for much of southern England, warning that the ongoing heatwave could lead to a rise in deaths.
The cause of the fire that disrupted Heathrow Airport operations remains unknown, with ongoing investigations focused on preventing future incidents.
Heathrow Airport has resumed full operations after a significant disruption caused by a fire at an electrical substation, which shut down the airport on Friday, leaving thousands of passengers stranded and flights diverted.
Britain’s King Charles III marks his 77th birthday. Unlike his predecessors, King Charles treats his actual birthday, on 14 November, as his main moment of reflection. This year, King Charles visited Wales—a decision that coincides with the overall spirit of his first three years on the throne.
The Azerbaijan embassy in Kyiv was damaged by debris from an Iskander missile during Russia’s overnight attack, which killed four people and injured dozens, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday.
Forty years after the eruption of Nevado del Ruiz buried the town of Armero, Colombia, survivors, families, and officials gathered to remember one of Latin America’s deadliest natural disasters.
Australia’s ambition to host the COP31 climate summit is under serious threat as a fierce competition with Türkiye heats up.
Iran has strongly rejected as “unfounded and irresponsible” a joint statement by the foreign ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) about Tehran’s nuclear program and its alleged support of Russia in the war with Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a phone conversation on Saturday to discuss the situation in Gaza and the wider region, the Kremlin said.
Iraq’s election commission said on Saturday that objections to the parliamentary election results will not affect the preliminary outcomes.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has firmly ruled out any possibility of U.S. military intervention in her country, stressing that security cooperation between the two neighbours is based on sovereignty and mutual respect.
The Vatican returned 62 artefacts linked to Canada’s Indigenous peoples to the country’s Catholic bishops, describing the gesture as "a concrete sign of dialogue, respect, and fraternity," according to a statement on Saturday.
Japan urged China on Saturday to take "appropriate measures" after Beijing issued a warning to its citizens against travelling to Japan, amid an ongoing dispute over Taiwan.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment