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Heathrow returning to normal after blaze

An airport spokeswoman said: "The airport is operating to timetable, we have a near-normal pattern of flights.

"If there are any delays, it's because a few aircraft are in the wrong place, having had to stay on the ground abroad yesterday as opposed to being here.

"Passenger loads are heavier than a normal Saturday because of people delayed from yesterday but we have extra staff dealing with customer care making sure people have as comfortable a time as possible while they are at the airport."

Airlines resumed services on Friday afternoon following the fire which broke out at 4.40am, stranding thousands of passengers and causing massive jams on nearby roads.

A total of 307 flights - about two-thirds of them British Airways - were cancelled as a result of the emergency.

British Airways resumed inbound services when the terminal re-opened at 1pm (GMT) on Friday with outbound flights taking off soon after 3pm.

A British Airways spokesman said on Saturday: "We have five or six aircraft which are not where they should be, but we are getting them back into the right position in the system.

"We are operating our normal programme and have not cancelled any flights this morning."

Customers who missed flights were being rebooked on later services, other airlines or on Eurostar and other trains and buses where appropriate.

BA's Chief Executive, Bob Ayling, said: "All our efforts have been geared towards looking after our passengers and getting our full operation back to normal."

Terminal 1 handles nearly half of the domestic and international passengers passing through Heathrow. It was closed for about 10 hours after the fire.

The blaze broke out in a Burger King restaurant in the terminal and spread through roof ducts. It took 60 firefighters almost five hours to put out.

The timing of the incident meant there were no passengers in Terminal 1 when the fire started.

Airport officials decided to close Terminals 2 and 3 for around an hour in case the outbreak spread.

The director of the fire safety engineering group at the University of Greenwich in south London, Professor Ed Galea, said: "It was extremely fortunate that the fire was very early in the day.

"Two hours later the terminal would have been packed and there could have been a chaotic evacuation," he said.

"The fact that we had the terminal open again so soon after the fire proves that our safety plans were in good order."

Travellers returning to the terminal met long queues and further exasperation. Terminal 1 handles both domestic and international flights.

The British Airports Authority and the London Fire Service are beginning inquiries into the cause and handling of the fire and assessing the cost of the damage.

The number to ring for information on flights to and from Heathrow is (+44) 0345 222111.

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Heathrow - the world's busiest international airport (12 Dec 97 | Background)

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