Police vehicles and fire engines can be seen near the scene where a fire broke out at a substation that powers Heathrow Airport in Hayes, West London on March 21, 2025.
Benjamin Kremmel | AFP | Getty Images
A fire at a current substation closed London’s Heathrow airport on Friday, causing massive travel disruptions around the world.
Heathrow, the UK’s largest airport and global travel hub, remains closed until 11:59pm on Friday, and the airport is expected to affect hundreds of flights.
Flight 679 was scheduled to land at Heathrow on Friday, and Flight 678 was scheduled to take off from the airport, according to flight tracker site Flightradar24.
Here’s what the airline tells passengers to get in and out of the airport:
British Airways
British Airways advised customers not to travel to the airport until they are notified.
“This will clearly have a major impact on our operations and our customers, and we will update them to them as soon as possible to update their travel options in the next 24 hours or later,” the statement said.
“If possible, we are already redirecting inbound flights on our way to Heathrow to other UK airports.”
Virgin Atlantic
A Virgin Atlantic spokesman told CNBC that the closure of Heathrow has “has had a major impact on the flight programmes at both Heathrow.”
“All Virgin Atlantics have arrived and departing flights will be cancelled until 9:30pm on March 21, with the remaining schedule for today currently under review,” they said in an emailed statement. “We ask that all customers not travel to Heathrow or scheduled departure airports or contact the customer centre at this time and check flight status on virginatlatic.com instead.”
Aircraft operated by Virgin Atlantic are currently being converted to other UK airports or are back where they took off.
The airline said it would email affected customers with rebooking details, but said availability would require some customers to be booked for flights on a different date or travel to or from another airport.
Passengers whose flights are cancelled and who do not want to travel are entitled to a refund.
Luftansa
Lufthansa told CNBC that she had cancelled all flights to arrive and depart at Heathrow on Friday.
“Passers affected by flight cancellations have been rebooked on other flights and have been notified of that,” the spokesperson said in an email. “This requires that your booking includes contact details such as email and phone numbers.”
Singapore Airlines
A spokesman for Singapore Airlines (SIA) said many of its flights were affected by the disruption.
Flight SQ322, which left Singapore on Thursday, was converted to Frankfurt, Germany, and Flight SQ306, which took off from Singapore on Friday, was converted to Charles Degaard Airport in Paris. Another flight that took off on Friday returned to Singapore.
Flight SQ318 from Singapore has been cancelled, the spokesman added.
“SIA will provide all the support needed for affected passengers, including providing hotel accommodations and accommodating them on alternative flights and land transport,” the spokesman said. “Other SIA flights between Singapore and London’s Heathrow may be affected.”
Emirates
Emirates said on Friday it had cancelled six flights both inside and outside Heathrow.
“Passers connecting to a flight to London’s Heathrow will not be accepted into the trip until further notice in the country of origin,” the airline said in a statement. “We are closely monitoring the situation and will update customers as it develops.”
Travelers coming and leaving Heathrow with Emirates can rebook or travel at a later date to travel to other UK airports, the airline said.
Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific said flights from Hong Kong to London CX239 and CX253 had been cancelled on March 21.
“All Cathay flights from London to Hong Kong have also been cancelled on March 21st,” the statement said. “We are assessing the situation and will continue to notify our customers of the latest updates.”
United Airlines
United said seven flights have been repurposed or returned to the original airport due to the closure, adding that all flights to London Heathrow on Friday had been cancelled.
“We work with our customers to offer alternative travel options,” Career said in a statement.
Switzerland
Switzerland said it cancelled all flights from Zurich and Geneva to Heathrow in Switzerland on Friday, affecting around 3,000 customers.
“As a precaution, all flights from Switzerland to London’s Heathrow were closed on Saturday, March 22nd, tomorrow, Saturday. Switzerland deeply regrets the inconvenience this caused passengers. We hope that the situation at Heathrow in London will return to normal as soon as possible.”
Qatar Airways
Qatar Airways said on Friday that seven flights were affected by the Heathrow closure.
“Qatar Airways is working closely with officials at LHR airport. Passengers affected for the above will be taken care of by customer care and the airport team,” it said.
aer lingus
Ireland’s carrier Aer Lingus said on Friday that all flights to and from London’s Heathrow have been cancelled to further notice.
Advised passengers to take one of the flights to monitor one of the planes and confirm information regarding the operation of the departure airport.
“Please note that if your booking is made through a third party (such as a travel agent, an online agent, or another airline), you will be able to receive a flight status update on your behalf.” “If your travel itinerary includes bookings with another airline, contact your airline directly for options.”
