LONDON, United Kingdom — London’s Heathrow Airport said it would resume «some flights» later Friday after a fire at a power station grounded planes at Europe’s busiest air
Kingdom — London’s Heathrow Airport said it would resume “some flights” later Friday after a fire at a power station grounded planes at Europe’s busiest air hub, causing travel chaos for thousands of people around the world.
The electricity substation fire late on Thursday shut down the airport, leading to the cancellation or diversion of hundreds of flights and raising questions about the infrastructure’s vulnerability.
Shortly after 1600 GMT an airport spokesperson said it was “now safely able to begin some flights later today.”
“Our first flights will be repatriation flights and relocating aircraft,” the spokesperson said, adding that “We hope to run a full operation tomorrow.”
British Airways said it had received clearance to depart eight long-haul flights from 7:00 pm to cities including Johannesburg, Singapore, and Riyadh.
Planes from Heathrow serve around 80 countries, and around 1,350 flights had been due to land or take off from the airport’s five terminals on Friday, according to the Flightradar24 tracking website.
Around 230,000 passengers use Heathrow every day — 83 million a year — making it one of the world’s busiest airports.
London’s Metropolitan Police said the force’s Counter Terrorism Command was leading the investigation into the fire given the “impact this incident has had on critical national infrastructure.”
“While there is currently no indication of foul play we retain an open mind at this time,” a spokesman added.
