The association representing airlines at Heathrow says it could take legal action if there’s no ‘amicable’ settlement over costs following Friday’s shutdown.
Heathrow was closed on Friday after a fire broke out at a nearby substation that supplies the airport.
Although some flights resumed later, Heathrow warned of significant disruption.
Heathrow Airlines Operators’ Committee Nigel Wicking told Sky News he hoped the matter could be ‘amicably settled at some point in time’ but added: “If we don’t get good enough recourse and repayment in terms of the costs, then yes, there might be a case for legal action.”
He said he hoped it wouldn’t come to taking the airport to court, but said: “But in some of these situations that’s the only course once you’ve gone through everything else.”
He also called for an independent investigation into what happened and the length of time it took for flights to resume.
“Airlines have a regulatory duty to take care of their passengers,” he said. “But in this particular case, we do feel that it was another party that caused the situation.”
Heathrow said: “This was an unprecedented issue which began with a fire at an off-airport substation, in less than 24 hours the entire airport was rebooted from a standing start and we delivered a full schedule from Saturday onwards.
“There are two reviews into the systems and response both at Heathrow and with the wider grid infrastructure.
“We will support these and lessons will be learned where needed. Every penny we invest in our airport infrastructure is approved by airlines and our regulator. On a project-by-project basis, they oversee and influence how we build and maintain Heathrow.”
Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye posted on LinkedIn on Monday to say: “So, was I proud of the situation we found ourselves in? Of course not.
“But I am incredibly grateful for, and proud of, what was achieved to get us out of the situation in such a short amount of time by teams of people we all rely on across the entire airport eco-system, but who rarely get the credit they deserve.”
See also: Heathrow defends shutdown
And: Trade rushes to rescue stranded clients
