Several of the UK newspapers pick up on an interview with the National Grid chief John Pettigrew who said that Heathrow had “enough power” from other substations and lack of power wasn’t the reason Europe’s biggest airport shut down.
Pettigrew told the FT that the fire that knocked out a substation was a “unique event”, but that two other substations remained operational and capable of powering the airport in west London.
Heathrow fire backlash – Airport acted ‘prematurely’
The airport was not shut down due to the fire but instead due to the time it took to switch from the damaged substation to the other two.
On Friday, Heathrow was shut down for 18 hours, causing thousands of flights to be cancelled and leaving passengers stranded across the world.
Heathrow boss ‘went back to bed‘ as fire shut down airport and saw flights cancelled
Explainer – The headline uses sensational language by emphasising that the Heathrow boss “went back to bed” during a crisis, implying negligence or irresponsibility. By focusing on this detail instead of the broader context of the fire or the operational response, it frames the boss in a negative light. The use of quotation marks also adds a layer of scepticism.
- Key Takeaway – Heathrow was closed on Friday after a fire at a nearby electrical depot raged on, with airport boss Thomas Woldbye reportedly going to bed instead of dealing with the crisis
The Daily Star says sources say Heathrow boss Thomas Woldbye reportedly went to sleep not long after news of a fire at the airport. The paper features an edited picture of Mr Woldbye in a bed with flames in the background.
National Grid chief says Heathrow had ‘enough power’ despite fire shutdown
Explainer – The headline is relatively neutral. It reports a factual statement from the National Grid chief without using emotive or loaded language. The use of quotation marks around “enough power” is standard journalistic practice to indicate a direct quote rather than imply doubt. Compared to more sensational headlines, this one remains balanced by focusing on the claim without exaggeration or assigning blame.
- Key Takeaways – Chief executive of power network says there was no lack of capacity at substations near airport
The FT has an interview with the National Grid boss who says there was no lack of capacity at substations near Heathrow Airport and questions the scale of Friday’s shutdown after one substation went up in flames.
Heathrow ‘had enough power to avoid shutdown’
Explainer – The headline features subtle bias by framing it as “had enough power to avoid shutdown” without attributing the statement to a source, it implies that Heathrow may have acted unnecessarily or incompetently. The absence of quotation marks or a clear source makes the claim appear more factual, potentially leading readers to question Heathrow’s decision. A more neutral headline would clarify who made the statement or present both sides of the story.
- Key Takeaway – National Grid boss says other substations were working and could have kept airport open
The Daily Telegraph quotes John Pettigrew’s interview with the FT, in which he said “Heathrow ‘had enough power to avoid shutdown’”.The paper says one industry source said the airport appeared desperate to keep passengers away, even though power and critical systems in some terminals had largely been restored by early Friday afternoon.
They said: “It isn’t clear why they made the decision so early, instead of giving themselves space to see how the situation unfolded and working out how to get some flights moving.
“It would have meant thousands more customers being able to travel as planned.”
