London Heathrow Airport Shut Down: A fire broke out at London's largest and primary international airport, Heathrow Airport, forcing full closure till midnight of March 21. More than 1,350 flights are expected to be impacted by this closure. India's leading carrier Air India has cancelled all its flights to Heathrow. Authorities have advised people to avoid using the busy airport even when it opens, as the west London side faces a host of disruptions.
The situation in London was chaotic this Thursday with two explosions and a fire at a substation. Many homes faced power outages, while the mass evacuation was carried out in west London. The impact escalated to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport.
Heathrow Airport Outage:
This led Heathrow Airport to announce a complete shutdown of its services. Heathrow Airport said, "Due to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport, Heathrow is experiencing a significant power outage."
Further, the airport also said, "To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23h59 on 21 March." The authorities of the airport advised passengers to not to travel to the airport and should contact their airline for further information.
"We apologise for the inconvenience," the airport said.
Heidi Alexander, a member of the Labour Party at Swindon South tweeted saying, "I'm receiving updates on the fast-moving situation at Heathrow Airport," I'm grateful to emergency services for responding to the fire, and National Grid for working to restore power to the airport and homes." She urged passengers not to travel to the airport, and contact their airline.
The latest update by the London Fire Department revealed that ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters responded to a fire at an electrical substation on Nestles Avenue in Hayes.
Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne said: "This was a very visible and significant incident, and our firefighters worked tirelessly in challenging conditions to bring the fire under control as swiftly as possible. "
Air India Heathrow Airport Flights:
Tata Group-backed Air India announced, "Due to a significant power outage, London Heathrow Airport has been shut down until 23:59 on 21st March. All Air India flights to and from London Heathrow for 21st March have been cancelled."
As per reports, more than 1,350 flights are expected to be impacted by the shutdown at Heathrow.
How To Get a Refund For Your Cancelled Flights?
Indian air passengers can apply for a refund for their cancelled tickets on two conditions:
If You Cancelled The Flight: In the case you have cancelled the flight, then you can visit the official website of the airline, if you booked the tickets online. To cancel, enter your PNR, booking number, registered email address, and mobile number. After adding these details, on the screen, the latest detail of your booked flight will be available. Cancel your flight, however, there could be cancellation charges but they vary from airline to airline and their terms & conditions. Airlines will refund your money at your preferred payment mode.
If Your Airline Cancelled The Flight: Reasons why airlines cancel flights due to technical issues, weather problems, air traffic, or any other man-made or natural disaster at the airport or the place. In this case, you can book another flight for another period, or apply for a refund at the website.
Most service providers allow users to book and cancel their flight tickets online. The steps to apply for a refund on a cancelled ticket on a desktop computer, as per Digit Insurance are:
Step 1: Visit the service provider's official website and click on My Account.
Step 2: Among Options, choose the Cancel Ticket option.
Step 3: Enter the PNR details of your flight ticket.
Step 4: Select the names of the passengers whose tickets you wish to cancel.
Step 5: Before confirming the cancellation, click on the "get refund" tab to raise a refund request. The service provider will refund the booking amount after charging a convenience fee.
The steps to apply for a full refund on flight cancellation from a smartphone application or browser, as per DIGIT are:
Step 1: Download and install the service provider's smartphone application.
Step 2: Log in to your account by entering your details. The application will reveal all current booking statuses.
Step 3: Under Your Trips section, choose the trip you want to cancel and claim refunds for.
Step 4: Enter your PNR and wait for the provider to accept your cancellation request. Upon successful cancellation, the service provider will refund your amount via your chosen mode of payment.
Notably, different airlines have different refund policies.
About Heathrow Airport:
Heathrow Airport also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named London Airport until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others being Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, City and Southend). 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. Heathrow was the airport with the most international connections in the world in 2024, as per Wikipedia.
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