Lois Larson
Heathrow Airport, also known as London Heathrow Airport, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, England. Heathrow Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world, facilitating over 200,000 travellers and seeing a plane land or take off every 45 seconds on average. The airport was founded as a small airfield in 1930 but was expanded into a much larger airport after World War II. Heathrow Airport has been subject to several disruptions and closures over the years, including a shutdown in March 2025 due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation causing a significant power outage and impacting thousands of passengers worldwide.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year Heathrow Airport was founded | 1930 |
| Year Heathrow Airport was renamed from London Airport | 1966 |
| Heathrow Airport's distance from Central London | 14 miles (23 kilometres) |
| Heathrow Airport's distance from Hounslow | 3 miles (5 kilometres) |
| Heathrow Airport's distance from Hayes | 3 miles (5 kilometres) |
| Heathrow Airport's distance from Staines-upon-Thames | 3 miles (5 kilometres) |
| Heathrow Airport's site coverage | 4.74 square miles (12.3 square kilometres) |
| Number of runways | 2 |
| Number of operational passenger terminals | 4 |
| Number of cargo terminals | 1 |
| Heathrow Airport's primary hubs | British Airways and Virgin Atlantic |
| Heathrow Airport's location | London Borough of Hillingdon |
| Heathrow Airport's postcode | TW6 |
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What You'll Learn
Heathrow Airport is one of the world's busiest travel hubs
Heathrow Airport, also known as London Heathrow Airport, is one of the world's busiest travel hubs. Located 14 miles (23 kilometres) west of Central London, it is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city in the United Kingdom. Heathrow is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system, which also includes Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, City, and Southend.
Heathrow's status as a major global travel hub is evident in its operational statistics. On average, a plane lands or takes off at Heathrow approximately every 45 seconds. In 2024, Heathrow was the busiest airport in Europe, the fourth busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic, and the second busiest airport in the world by international passenger traffic. It also boasted the most international connections globally in 2024.
The airport's significance is further underscored by its role as the primary hub for prominent airlines such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. Heathrow's extensive network of connections is facilitated by its two parallel east-west runways and four operational passenger terminals, with an additional Concourse D proposed to accommodate the growing demand.
Heathrow's pivotal role in global travel was highlighted during an unexpected closure in March 2025 due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation. The shutdown caused significant disruption, impacting over 200,000 passengers and leading to the cancellation or diversion of more than 1,000 flights. The incident underscored the airport's critical position in the world's travel infrastructure, with ripple effects felt by airlines and travellers worldwide.
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A fire at a substation caused a power outage
Heathrow Airport, located 14 miles (23 km) west of Central London, is the primary and largest international airport serving London. In 2024, it was the busiest airport in Europe and the fourth busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic.
On March 21, 2025, a fire at a nearby electrical substation caused a significant power outage at Heathrow Airport, leading to its closure and worldwide travel disruption. The blaze started on Thursday night, and the airport announced its closure six hours later. This resulted in the cancellation or diversion of over 1,000 flights, affecting more than 200,000 passengers.
A fire at an electrical substation can cause a power outage by damaging critical equipment and interrupting the flow of electricity. In the case of Heathrow Airport, the fire likely severed the dedicated connection between the substation and the airport, making it impossible to supply bulk electricity to the airport. While backup systems, including diesel generators, kicked in, they were not sufficient to power the entire airport.
The power outage at Heathrow Airport raised questions about the resilience of critical infrastructure and the reliance on a single electrical substation. Specialists led an investigation into the cause of the fire, and engineers worked to assess the damage, restore power, and bring in emergency generators.
The impact of the power outage extended beyond the airport, affecting tens of thousands of customers, including homes, and leading to the evacuation of residents due to smoky conditions. As of March 22, 2025, power had been restored to most residents, and Heathrow Airport was expected to operate at full capacity by Saturday, March 23. However, travel delays and disruptions were anticipated to continue throughout the weekend.
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The airport was closed for most of Friday
Heathrow Airport, one of the world's busiest travel hubs, was closed for most of Friday, 21 March 2025, due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation. The blaze, which started on Thursday night, caused a "'significant" power outage across the airport.
The airport authorities announced its closure six hours after the fire broke out at 8 pm on Thursday. Heathrow's chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, called the outage and disruption "'unprecedented'". He added that the airport would be operating at "100 percent" by Saturday, but the travel chaos could last for several days.
The power outage forced the cancellation or diversion of more than 1,000 flights on Friday, affecting tens of thousands of passengers. Heathrow was anticipating up to 291,000 passengers on a total of 1,351 flights on Friday. Many passengers were left stranded in airports worldwide, with some flights returning to their origin or being diverted to other airports.
The London Fire Brigade said there was no power at Terminal 2 or Terminal 4, while Terminals 3 and 5 likely had power. National Grid, the company that operates major power systems in England and Wales, said it had restored power to 62,000 customers as of 6 am on Friday, including parts of Heathrow on an interim basis. However, the airport urged passengers not to travel to the airport unless their airline advised them to do so.
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The cause of the fire is under investigation
On Friday, the 21st of March 2025, London's Heathrow Airport, Europe's busiest airport, was closed for most of the day due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation. The fire, which started on Thursday night, caused a significant power outage, leading to the cancellation or diversion of over 1,000 flights and affecting nearly 300,000 passengers.
The fire caused travel chaos, with thousands of flight delays and cancellations. Heathrow Airport resumed some flights on Friday night, prioritizing the repatriation and relocation of aircraft. The airport anticipated returning to full operation by Saturday, with normal operations expected on Saturday morning.
The head of Heathrow Airport, Thomas Woldbye, described the incident as "an incident of major severity" and apologized for the disruption. He expressed pride in the airport's response and stated that the backup systems worked as intended but were not designed to power the entire airport.
The investigation into the fire's cause will focus on the electrical distribution equipment, and it is expected to yield insights into energy resilience for critical national infrastructure.
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The airport resumed operations on Friday night
Heathrow Airport, one of the world's busiest travel hubs, was forced to shut down on Friday, March 21, 2025, due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation that caused a significant power outage. The airport, which sees a plane land or take off every 45 seconds on average, announced its closure six hours after the blaze broke out at 8 pm on Thursday.
The power outage disrupted more than 1,000 flights and stranded tens of thousands of passengers, causing travel chaos worldwide. Heathrow's chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, called the outage and disruption unprecedented and vowed that the airport would be operating at "100 percent" by Saturday. Woldbye also apologised for the inconvenience caused and praised those responsible for restoring operations.
On Friday night, the airport resumed operations, with a British Airways jet from nearby Gatwick Airport being the first plane to touch down at about 6 pm local time. By 9 pm, three of the eight long-haul British Airways flights scheduled to depart from Heathrow had taken off. United Airlines also stated that most of its 17 scheduled flights to Heathrow were expected to operate later on Friday, arriving in Britain on Saturday morning.
While the airport resumed operations on Friday night, the ripple effects of the shutdown were expected to cause delays for travellers throughout the weekend. Heathrow's CEO advised passengers travelling on Saturday to arrive at the airport at their usual time and assured them that the airport would be fully operational by Saturday morning.
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Frequently asked questions
Heathrow Airport was founded as a small airfield in 1930 but was developed into a much larger airport after World War II.
Heathrow Airport is the primary and largest international airport serving London, England. It is one of the busiest airports in the world, with a plane landing or taking off every 45 seconds on average.
Heathrow Airport was forced to shut down on 21 March 2025 due to a fire at a nearby electrical substation that caused a significant power outage.
