Closure of Heathrow means that flights are diverted to other airports raising possibility of congestion at terminals

The closure of Heathrow Airport may have a significant ripple affect across leading airports throughout the world, as flights are diverted, raising the possibility of increased congestion and exposure at these airports according to our analysis.

Media outlets have reported that over 20 airports are currently handling the diverted flights from Heathrow. These airports include not UK centric ones, such as Gatwick and Birmingham but also major international airports including Amsterdam, Charles De Gaulle, Washington Dulles, JFK, Chicago O’Hare, Madrid, Helsinki and Vancouver.

Over 1,351 outbound and inbound flights at Heathrow were cancelled on Friday, following a power outage that resulted in 4,900 homes being without power and 150 people being evacuated from the surrounding properties. This was the first time in 15 years that Heathrow has been fully shut down.

ALPS Aerospace Analysis
Analysis by our ALPS Aerospace shows that as of today, these 20 airports have a combined 1,574 aircraft on the ground, with a market value of $72 billion based on scheduled flight data. With these airports now fielding unscheduled flights from Heathrow, there is a concern regarding the handling of the unexpected congestion at these terminals, particularly if the delays continue over the weekend.

At the time of closure, ALPS Aerospace calculated that there were 109 aircraft on the ground at the airport, with a market value of $8 billion based on scheduled flight data. Further analysis can reveal that British Airways had the most aircraft at the time of closure, with 71 aircraft, followed by Virgin Atlantic with 17 aircraft and American Airlines with 10 aircraft.

Russell Group Managing Director, Suki Basi commented on the Heathrow outage:

“The closure of Europe’s busiest airport was always going to create a serious headache for everyone involved within the global aviation ecosystem.

However, what our data analysis highlights is the wider contagion effect beyond Heathrow, with major airports from JFK to Madrid now handling more flights than expected. Given at the time when many airports have been on the record with struggling to cope with increased passenger demand, this unexpected demand may bring with it more some unforeseen consequences.

It is at times like this, it is my firm belief that by having access to good actionable insights as we have produced today can help people within the aviation ecosystem from insurers to airlines and airports alike, to take effective action in managing any potential risks from such an event”.