Heathrow airport resumed some of the flights

On Friday, some flights after a fire of the electrical substation resumed at Heathrow airport. On Saturday, the airport is to return to normal activities.

British Airways aircraft, which was flying with Perth in Australia And he was redirected to the airport in Paris, he landed at Heathrow on Friday just after 6pm (19 in Poland). It was the first cruise that reached the London airport After a fire in the electrical substationwhich on the same day caused the cancellation and redirect of many connections.

On Friday morning, Heathrow press services announced that the airport would be closed until midnight from Friday to Saturday.

The transformer caught fire

The fire broke out at night from Thursday to Friday in Hayes, where the transformer caught fire in the electrical substation supplying the airport.

The British aviation expert Julian Bray pointed out that the substation in Hayes is the only source of airport power supply. – Heathrow really has to take a closer look at itbecause the lack of an alternative power source and the fact that one fire can destroy the entire airport is extremely alarming – he assessed.

The airport was to serve over 1350 flights and over 290,000 passengers on Friday.

Thwarted plans of 200,000 travelers

On Friday evening, after landing the first plane after the fire, the spokesperson of Heathrow announced that cooperation with the airlines began to resume calls.

It is estimated that The failure thwarted the plans of over 200,000 travelers. According to Anita Mendiratta, an aviation expert cited by the British “Guardian”, prevented the transport of about 4,000 tons of various loads. “This is an extreme situation that affects the entire aviation ecosystem,” she said. In her opinion, “dealing with everything will take up to four days.”

The failure also affected the financial market – the shares of the owner of British Airways (IAG) fell by 1.9 percent, Lufthansa lost 1.7 percent, and Ryanair 2.3 percent. Experts emphasize that the impact on airlines and companies depending on cargo transport will be short -term but felt.

“Weak point” of the airport infrastructure

The general director of Heathrow Thomas Woldbye admitted during a press conference that “power supply is a weak point” airport infrastructure. – We lost the power corresponding to the consumption of medium -sized city, and although our spare systems were working properly, they were not able to handle the entire airport – added Woldbyye, quoted by the Reuters agency.

The British transport minister Heidi Alexander pointed out that there was no evidence that the fire in Hayes was the result of intentional action.

Julian Bray, asked if the fire in the substation could be an act of sabotage, assessed that it was too early to assess it, while noticing that the substation is not protected in any way. – It is not behind any military fence. It's just an uncovered infrastructure – he emphasized.

The investigation into the causes of the fire leads, among others Faculty of Police to fight terrorism.