Heathrow – eye of a needle
Air traffic in southern England was interrupted for around 48 hours recently after a fire in a substation near Heathrow airport in London. Angus Hind, director of the logistics company Europa Air & Sea, reports on how his firm experienced this hectic time and why the United Kingdom is so dependent on its main airport.
“London Heathrow remains the main option for British trade,” the logistics company Europa Air & Sea headlined its statement on this year’s closure of the airport in the South of England due to a fire at a nearby substation.
According to Europa Air & Sea, the resumption of operations in 48 hours underlines “the resilience of the airport as the UK’s main air cargo hub.”
What ‘rescued’ the airport
According to figures released by Parcelhero, the accident near the airport caused disruptions to the transport of goods worth around GBP 543 million.
“In the end more than 1,300 flights were cancelled.”
Angus Hind, the director of Europa Air & Sea, pointed to the facts that “quick thinking, clear communication as well as robust internal facilities actually ‘saved’ the airport.”
The incident led to the cancellation of more than 1,300 flights. Hind’s enterprise had initially actually prepared for the possibility that the interruption would last for many weeks, in the worst case. “In an ideal world the UK would have better airport infrastructure,” Hind continued.
Dependence in the UK
The dependence on Heathrow is a bit of a problem. Many regional airports lack capacities to handle widebody aircraft, Hind added. A few hubs offer limited services by just a few airlines.
This makes it difficult to leave out Heathrow airport when transporting goods by air. “It makes sense for us to ask ourselves why such critical infrastructure in the UK is dependent on a single local substation,” says Hind.
“Our biggest concern at the time was to get our goods to the Middle East in time for Eid.”
Nine days after the fire occurred, Ramadan ended. Here, too, the company had sought out solutions in advance, in case the restrictions had lasted longer. But “the response from the Heathrow airport team and airlines’ handling sheds was impressive, to say the least,” Hind continued. His company routed its cargo through other European airports.
Hind’s firm remains convinced that “investing substantially in regional cargo hubs at airports in all corners of the UK would be a step in the right direction.”