Heathrow operations resumed following the airport closure, with airlines working through residual schedule disruption.
What happened?
Heathrow Airport closed on 21 March 2025 after a fire at a nearby electrical substation affected power supplies to its terminals. Flights to and from Heathrow were cancelled and inbound aircraft were diverted while the airport worked to restore operations.
Passenger rights during the closure
The UK Civil Aviation Authority told affected passengers not to travel to Heathrow and reminded airlines that cancelled passengers should be offered a refund or rerouting. Where UK passenger-rights rules applied, airlines were also expected to provide appropriate care such as meals, refreshments and accommodation while passengers waited.
Compensation
Whether fixed compensation applied depended on the circumstances of the individual flight and the legal test for extraordinary circumstances. Delay Pilot therefore records the compensation outlook for this historical incident as case-specific rather than making a blanket eligibility claim.
Compensation may be possible
The wider cause is not yet clear enough for a firm incident-level view. Your individual flight can still be checked against UK261 criteria.
Incident-wide guidance is not a final claim result. Your flight still needs to be assessed against its exact route, timings and cause.This incident is resolved and is retained as part of Delay Pilot’s disruption archive. Passengers dealing with an unresolved claim from the event should use their airline’s records and correspondence to establish the exact reason for their individual cancellation or delay before assessing compensation eligibility.
Fixed compensation and immediate passenger rights are separate questions. Depending on the circumstances, care, rerouting or refund rights may still apply even when fixed compensation does not.
Heathrow operations resumed following the airport closure, with airlines working through residual schedule disruption.
Heathrow was closed after a fire at a nearby electrical substation affected power supplies to the airport.