A fire at an electricity substation triggered a major power outage on Friday (March 21), forcing the complete shutdown of London's Heathrow Airport and disrupting travel for hundreds of thousands of passengers worldwide. Counter-terrorism police have now launched an investigation, given the scale of the impact on critical national infrastructure.

Advertisment

Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, was due to handle around 1,350 flights across its five terminals, serving routes to approximately 80 countries, according to Flightradar24.

However, the outage led to widespread delays, cancellations, and diversions, throwing international travel into chaos.

Also read: ‘Contained version of 9/11’: Why is London Heathrow Airport’s closure being compared to darkest day in US history?

Advertisment

'No indication of foul play'

London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed that its Counter Terrorism Command is now leading the inquiry. A spokesperson said, “While there is currently no indication of foul play, we retain an open mind at this time.”

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) criticised Heathrow for the failure, calling it a result of poor planning. Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General, said on X, “How is it that critical infrastructure—of national and global importance—is totally dependent on a single power source without an alternative? If that is the case—as it seems—then it is a clear planning failure by the airport.”

Advertisment

Also read: London's Heathrow airport, one of world's busiest, closed due to power outage

Meanwhile, Reform UK MP Richard Tice blamed the breakdown on Heathrow’s decision to replace its diesel generators with a biomass-powered system in a bid to meet environmental targets.

Speaking on GB News, Tice said, “Critical infrastructure like that obviously needs a backup and I can exclusively reveal to you this morning that Heathrow changed its backup systems to be net zero compliant. It got rid of their diesel generators and moved to a biomass generator which was designed not to completely replace the grid, but work alongside the grid.”

He added, “Their net zero compliant backup system has completely failed in its core function at the first time of asking. It beggar’s belief.”

Also read: Heathrow shuts down: Photo shows 120 flights caught in chaos as planes return to Mumbai, Delhi

Tice went on to call the situation “a complete failure of common sense,” saying, “This has now affected transport and hundreds of thousands all over the world. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. We know diesel generators work as backup systems. If this is correct, and I have no reason to believe it’s not, they are guilty of gross negligence of the highest order.”

(With inputs from agencies)