Luton airport latest: Passengers re-enter terminal with flights expected to resume at 3pm

In an update issued after the runway reopened, Luton Airport confirmed flights were restarting however warned of delays. 

In an update posted at 3.30pm, Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier said:

Two fire engines, an aerial platform and the incident expose unit dwell at the scene of the fire currently. 

Crews continue to work with airport fire service to monitor hot spots. 

The fire service can verify the preliminary vehicle exasperated by the fire was as soon as a diesel vehicle. 

An investigation to resolve the explanation at the support of the fire is underway. 

Major roads round the station are all inaugurate. 

A Ryanair flight journey for Cork in Ireland has perfect departed from Luton Airport, in accordance to the BBC.

Paul Gaitely, 59, who lives lower than a mile from the airport, heard bangs and seen flames from his dwelling, which led him to enlighten a plane had crashed.

He said: “We all heard crashes and we may maybe moreover hear the total sirens,

“I said to my accomplice ‘there’s something going down at the airport.’

“Then we may maybe moreover heard the bangs from the automobiles, the windows.

“We heard the sirens sooner than the bangs. I may maybe moreover survey the flames, I believed it was as soon as a plane atomize.”

Drop-offs are inaugurate again at Luton Airport following a wide fire that has destroyed a full bunch of autos in a multi-storey vehicle park.

The 1,900-capability Terminal 2 vehicle park was as soon as engulfed in flames closing night time after a fireplace broke out perfect sooner than 9pm.

Roads to the airport had been cordoned off by police because the fire started, however at 1.20pm today the blue and white tape was as soon as lifted.

Passengers till now bear confronted a one-mile hike to the terminal, many of whom arrived to learn their flight was as soon as cancelled.

These photos divulge passengers interior Luton Airport ready for flights to resume on Wednesday afternoon after a first-rate fire in a vehicle park.

Greater than 100 firefighters were scrambled to the airport on Tuesday night time after a diesel vehicle caught fire and unfold to other autos, inflicting “main structural give draw” in the multi-storey building.

According to the on-line departures board, the first flight scheduled to take off is at 4pm to Lanzarote.

A female eyewitness has told how she attempted to set aside aside out a vehicle fire at Luton Airport sooner than its gasoline tank exploded and the building in part collapsed.

The girl, who wished to dwell nameless, said she travelled to the airport on Tuesday night time to get her mother-in-legislation and daughter when she chanced on a vehicle engulfed by flames.

“After we first seen the fire we tried to set aside aside it out. I filmed a transient video in case I needed to divulge airport workers,” she said.

“We went down to a lower floor to score a fireplace extinguisher as there were already two empty ones nearby.

“By the purpose we got support the gasoline tank had already exploded and there was as soon as nothing we may maybe moreover design.”

The blaze later turned into perfect sufficient to honest the building to in part give draw, injuring four firefighters and one member of airport workers.

Video footage has emerged it looks showing the second a multi-storey vehicle park at Luton Airport in part collapsed after a diesel vehicle caught fire sooner than spreading to other autos.

CCTV captured from at some stage in the terminal vehicle park looks to divulge the ceiling crashing to the ground after one vehicle caught alight on Tuesday night time.

The Telegraph has spoken to more than one airport workers who assert the footage, which is dated on Tuesday, is accurate.

Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue said the multi-storey building suffered “main structural give draw” as greater than 100 firefighters tackled the flames at the peak of the blaze.

Fireplace chiefs assert a astronomical selection of automobiles were left undamaged following the fire however can no longer but be eliminated from the vehicle park because the not recent exit route is unsafe.

A spread of planes bear now departed for Luton airport at least flights to and from the airport were suspended.

According to the Flight Radar internet jabber, Ryanair planes from Barcelona, Murcia, Alicante and Krakow are all journey for Bedfordshire. 

The first flights to accelerate away Luton are expected from 3pm. 

According to the on-line departures board, the first flight scheduled to take off is at 4pm to Lanzarote.

That may maybe maybe be nearly 19 hours after the fire first broke out.

A deliberate strike by cleaners and parking attendants at Luton Airport has been suspended on story of the fire which has halted flights.

People of Unite employed by a cleansing contractor were due recede out for 5 days from Saturday, while parking attendants were due to strike for per week from Friday.

Tens of thousands of airline passengers suffered disruption on Wednesday, with Luton Airport closed after a vehicle fire precipitated a vehicle park to give draw.

A senior fire officer has reportedly said the vehicle park at Luton Airport may maybe maybe need to be totally demolished with greater than 1,000 autos aloof parked interior it. 

According to Simon Calder, the Autonomous’s Shuttle Correspondent, the intense heat has weakened the metallic at some stage in the multi-storey building to the purpose it is going to moreover be deemed too hazardous to get effectively undamaged automobiles.

Mr Calder tweeted: “Luton: senior fire officer tells me your total vehicle park may maybe maybe need to be demolished – with greater than 1,000 autos aloof interior – because the intense heat has made the metallic brittle.

“Convalescing automobiles, even these that are undamaged, may maybe moreover be deemed to hazardous.”

In a statement on the Luton Airport vehicle park fire, a spokesman for the Association of British Insurers said: 

“Dwelling owners of autos caught up in this fire will naturally be very concerned.

“Comprehensive and third-get together fire and theft motor insurance coverage policies will camouflage fire damage.

“Drivers affected may maybe moreover aloof jabber any assert to their motor insurer. We are able to continue to work with our participants and Luton Airport to understand the situation, as and when more information turns into obtainable.

“It is too early to estimate the insured value of the fire.

“Travellers caught up in the disruption following the fire may maybe moreover aloof take a look at the station with their air service or bolt operator.

“Some bolt polices may maybe moreover supply diminutive camouflage for delays or any abandonment of bolt.”

The airport said in a statement: 

Following closing night time’s vehicle fire in Terminal Automotive Park 2, emergency products and providers bear now downgraded the incident however dwell on the scene as a precaution.

The groups bear labored hard to get the airport operational, with the first passengers now re-getting into the terminal and the first flights expected to accelerate faraway from 3pm.

For these arriving by vehicle, the lengthy and mid-stop vehicle parks are fully operational, and a non permanent drop-off station has been established in the mid-stop vehicle park.

For these travelling to the airport by rail, the Toddle shuttle remains out of service with replace buses in operation.

Extra workers dwell on hand to abet passengers across the airport.

Stranded travellers bear taken to dozing in chairs and on the ground of Luton airport where all flights are currently suspended, experiences Michael Murphy.

One airport worker, who wished to dwell nameless, said the fire was as soon as going to “majorly” impact products and providers in the coming days. 

Some passengers bear complained that some airlines design no longer bear a customer service desk to ask for information about their situations.

Stranded passengers who bear considered flights cancelled as a results of the Luton Airport fire is no longer going to get compensation, a bolt expert has warned, experiences Jack Simpson, the Telegraph’s Transport Correspondent.

Julia Lo Bue-Stated, chief executive of Benefit Shuttle Partnership, said that while airlines would refund passengers for overlooked flights, there would no longer be any extra compensation because the incident was as soon as out of the airlines regulate.

The comments reach after a astronomical blaze at Luton Airport closing night time precipitated bolt chaos, with flights suspended till at least 3pm today.

It is estimated that this can lead to the cancellation of round 140 flights, affecting greater than 25,000 passengers.

Ms Bue-Stated, whose physique represents bolt brokers, said: “Passengers bear the lawful to a repayment and  or to be rebooked – airline has an obligation to be obvious passengers are booked on alternative flights even when this manner with a assorted service – from every other airport if they cant get them out or into Luton.

“All self-discipline to availability. They are able to moreover be ready to assert support cheap out of pocket costs as a final consequence of no longer being ready to bolt – in a single day hotel, prepare tickets to alternative airport and so forth.

“No compensation can be due as this may maybe moreover be considered as an noteworthy (out of the airlines regulate) circumstance.”

Below aviation regulations passengers can assert compensation for a cancelled flight if the replace flight delays your arrival by two hours or your flight was as soon as cancelled lower than 14 days sooner than the scheduled departure.

For shorter haul flights, passengers can on the total get below £220, with compensation for some lengthy haul flights hitting greater than £500.

On the alternative hand, crucially this has to be a lengthen that is the responsibility of the airline, which the fire at Luton was as soon as no longer.

A van driver whose vehicle is stuck in a vehicle park at Luton Airport has told how he seen flames and explosions when he arrived at the terminal, Michael Murphy experiences.

Chris Meacey, 57, a susceptible policeman and soldier, said he heard “rather a lot of explosions” and “crashing noises” by Luton airport vehicle park in the early hours of this morning. 

Mr Meacey, who now works for a washing machine firm, parked his van there the earlier day afternoon, on level one, two floor below where the fire started. 

“I wakened at 2.15am, went down to reception and they told us of the fire,” he said. 

“We made our manner up and there we seen flames and we heard rather a lot of explosions of what sounded bask in gasoline tanks. 

“Then we heard crashing noises, which I will top deem were the ground [of the car park] for stages two and three. Emergency products and providers arrived and as daylight came by I went and had a more in-depth survey at our bit, which wasn’t touched.

“However where my van is, there’s no floor in front of it. So I will potentially be ready two to four weeks sooner than they can get it out. As for compensation, I won’t know something till I get an electronic mail or a name from the dwelling owners of that building.”

Mr Meacey said he was as soon as told that three quarters of the vehicle park “had collapsed and had been damaged, and round 1200 autos had been lost,” correct by a briefing with the Bedfordshire fire chief this morning. 

Greg Dickinson on the Telegraph’s bolt desk explains what will happen as soon as Luton Airport reopens.

The Luton Airport internet jabber says that flights will resume from 3pm this afternoon. However in the occasion you may maybe maybe moreover be due to waft from Luton later this afternoon or this evening, you may maybe maybe moreover aloof face delays or your flight may maybe moreover be cancelled.

The next 24 hours is in point of fact a logistical concern for airlines, airport workers and air visitors regulate, as dozens of planes were diverted to land at other airports, as a ways away as Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester and Cardiff. Many more plane are on runways foreign ready to be given the golf green light to take off. 

So even as soon as the airport gets all its workers support in the building and operations open, further cancellations and delays are sadly inevitable.

Passengers were pictured interior Luton Airport as they no longer sleep for for flights to resume following a first-rate fire in a vehicle park on Tuesday night time. 

A Polish family who came on holiday to London bear told how they slept on the ground at Luton Airport after a fireplace at a multi-storey vehicle park precipitated flight cancellations.

Gregorz Szmit, 46, said their flight to Gdansk may maybe moreover aloof bear departed at 9.50pm on Tuesday and is now scheduled to leave at 7.30pm on Wednesday.

Mr Szmit, talking from the terminal building where he is ready with his accomplice and their two sons extinct seven and 15, said: “We were on holiday for 5 days to consult with London – British Museum, Trafalgar Sq..

“That is sophisticated, I must assert. That is our first bolt to England, to London.

“It’s been an bolt.”

AA technical expert Greg Carter said essentially the most traditional reason at the support of auto fires is an electrical fault with the 12-volt battery plan.

He added that diesel is “unparalleled less flammable” than petrol, and in a vehicle it takes “intense stress or sustained flame” to ignite diesel.

Passengers who arrived at Luton Airport on Wednesday assert they’re perplexed and frustrated.

Travellers, some with diminutive children, dragged baggage up and down the road to the airport, hazardous of what to design while returning holidaymakers were diverted as a ways away as Liverpool.

Rebecca Fancourt and her daughter Jane Knight, from Lincolnshire, were booked on a flight to Turkey at 12.30pm. Despite checking on-line and calling Tui they’re hazardous as to what is going down and whether or no longer their holiday will aloof accelerate forward.

A returning holidaymaker, who did not need to be named, said: “We landed closing night time. Came by the terminal all comely and knowing ‘shining – two hours drive and we’ll be dwelling’. Then we seen the total flames and smoke and were ushered away. My vehicle is stuck in vehicle park one.

“We had to stop at the Vacation Inn and now we are ready for my son to reach and decide us up. No belief if our vehicle is okay or when we are able to get it.”

Any other Albanian lady with a toddler said: “We were diverted to Liverpool closing night time. We were given a taxi high-tail to Luton where our vehicle is parked. My husband is making an attempt to get our vehicle out. We don’t know which vehicle park it is in.

“After that we bear got to get support to our dwelling in Birmingham.”

Wizz Air, Luton Airport’s biggest airline, has issued a statement this morning in which it said this may maybe moreover design what it will most likely to minimise disruption for passengers.

Due to the unexpected fire at London Luton Airport multi-story vehicle park, all flights are suspended till the afternoon of 11th October. 

All affected passengers who booked straight by Wizz Air can be contacted and provided updates by electronic mail and SMS.

 Customers who booked by a third-get together may maybe moreover aloof contact them for further information. 

Despite the truth that the situation is beyond our regulate, Wizz Air apologises for any inconvenience precipitated and is doing all the pieces in its energy to minimise disruption.

Mr Hopkinson said a ramp is being installed to get rid of autos from the vehicle park as the not recent exit route is unsafe.

He said: “We’ve currently got four fire appliances and a couple of alternative specialist crews however we are very unparalleled centered on getting a handover and getting this airport inaugurate as quickly as we are able to.”

He said there are “perfect skittish of 1,500” autos in the affected vehicle park.

He added: “There could be a astronomical amount that are no longer damaged and our focus as effectively is can we get rid of these autos safely without inflicting any wretchedness to the responders.”

Mr Hopkinson added there were no sprinklers in the vehicle park at Luton Airport.

He told journalists at the scene: “We are already talking to the airport about guaranteeing that any future, and the present, vehicle parks bear sprinklers fitted because this building is no longer sprinkler protected.

“Sprinklers may maybe moreover bear made a obvious impact on this incident.”

Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier, said there were no early indications to imply the fire was as soon as suspicious

He said: “We wouldn’t bear any intelligence at this stage to imply that this was as soon as something instead of an unintended fire that started in a single of the autos that had no longer lengthy arrived at the airport.

“It was as soon as no longer an EV. This was as soon as a diesel powered vehicle.”

Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier said the operation had now been scaled support and was as soon as now no longer a first-rate incident. It said an  investigation into the explanation at the support of the fire will start as soon as stable to design so. 

EasyJet, which is Luton Airport’s second biggest service, has up to now cancelled 35 flights today as a results of a first-rate fire in a terminal vehicle park on Tuesday night time.

A spokesperson said:

Due to the ongoing closure of Luton airport our flights from Luton are currently unable to operate as deliberate. 

We are doing all imaginable to minimise the impact on our customers, offering these on cancelled flights with choices to rebook or get a repayment, in addition to offering hotel accommodation and meals where required. 

We propose all passengers due to waft with us from Luton to take a look at the status of their flights on Flight Tracker at www.easyjet.com/en/flight-tracker for proper-time information. 

The protection and wellbeing of customers and crew is easyJet’s absolute top priority and we may bask in to apologise to customers for the inconvenience precipitated.

In case your flight from Luton Airport has been cancelled today, you may maybe maybe moreover be entitled to either be positioned on an alternative flight or get a corpulent refund, writes Greg Dickinson on the Telegraph’s bolt desk.

You may maybe maybe maybe moreover aloof already were contacted by your airline this morning. If no longer, phone their customer service line or take a look at their internet jabber and social media channels for updates.

In the occasion you decide for a replace flight, there are a couple of techniques this may maybe moreover play out. The bolt exchange physique, ABTA, says: “In the occasion you decide out the replace flight, assuredly referred to as being ‘rerouted’, most airlines will e book you on one other of their flights to the equivalent destination. On the alternative hand, if an alternative airline is flying there tremendously sooner then you may maybe maybe moreover bear the lawful to be booked on to that flight as an alternative.”

In the occasion you decide for a repayment, then you are going to get your a repayment for all formula of the be aware that you haven’t musty. So in case your outbound flight is cancelled on story of the Luton Airport fire, you may maybe maybe moreover assert on the return leg too.

Repeat that, because the non permanent closure of Luton Airport is due to a fireplace, and due to this truth out of the regulate of the airlines that operate from the airport, you is no longer going to be entitled to extra compensation beyond a imaginable refund.

The BBC is reporting that the fire that broke out in a multi-storey vehicle park at Luton Airport likely started in a diesel vehicle.

The corporation has spoken to Bedfordshire fire chief Andy Hopkinson.

Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier assert firefighters are likely to dwell at Luton airport at some stage in Wednesday as they monitor “smoldering remains” at a terminal vehicle park.

In an update issued at 9am, it said:

Crews bear labored extraordinarily hard at some stage in the night time and into the early morning to regulate and extinguish the fire.

Firefighting operations are monitoring the smoldering remains and can continue at some stage in the day.

At relate four crews and an aerial appliance dwell at the scene, and crews are working in conjunction with the airport fire service.

All flights are suspended till 3pm. In the occasion you maybe can bear a flight leaving sooner than 3pm, please design no longer bolt to the airport.

Please set aside faraway from the station owing to severe visitors delays. 

The Telegraph’s Shuttle Correspondent Chris Leadbeater is caught up in the chaos.

Here is what he’s had to assert

I’ve had more enjoyable fright calls than the 6am text which told me my flight had been cancelled. An tense fashion in frequent situations; a minute bit trickier ought to you may maybe maybe moreover be in Poprad in northern Slovakia, and there are top two flights to London per week. 

Greatest after I’d absorbed this first share of dumb news did I learn the second. That there has been a first-rate fire at Luton Airport, and all flights are off till at least 3pm, no longer perfect mine. 

I even were in Poprad to evaluate a share on what is one of Europe’s more imprecise cities. Fortunately, it isn’t so imprecise that it isn’t a stop on the main east-west railway line across Slovakia. I am typing this from a 5-hour international prepare, heading south-west to Vienna. The value of the bolt? A princely 29 euros. 

As soon as I get to the Austrian capital, I will get a flight to London. A frustrating day, however others can be unparalleled worse affected.

That said, I design bear to figure out how I retrieve my vehicle from Luton…

Luton airport has posted an additional update in which it says it is working hard to turn into operational as quickly as imaginable.

All flights to and from Luton dwell suspended till 3pm.

Photographs bear emerged this morning of the damage to the airport vehicle park where a first-rate fire broke out on Tuesday night time. 

A major incident was as soon as declared as flames ripped by the multi-storey building which in part collapsed in consequence.

Passengers bear described how they arrived to the airport on Wednesday top to ogle “Luton is burning”.

Eight Polish passengers were stranded for nine hours after their early morning flight was as soon as cancelled.

Accumulate admission to to the Airport from the Luton Inform Air-Rail Transit has been closed, leaving passengers stuck at Luton Airport Parkway station.

One passenger is exercising at the station while his flight has been delayed for a “couple of hours”.

Nikodem Lesiak, 18, said he and seven other Polish university college students are “drained” as they bear got been stranded since 12 am after their 7:50 am flight to Krakow, Poland, was as soon as cancelled. The faculty students were in the UK for holiday for 5 days.

He told the PA news company: “We are drained, and we bear got spent your total night time here. We need to get to Poland as fast as imaginable.

“After we came, we found out Luton is burning and all the pieces is closed, and we were supposed to bear our flight at 7:50 today however it was as soon as cancelled. We found one other be aware to Poland from one other metropolis after which we bear got to take a coach to the metropolis we live in.”

These photos divulge the essential fire which precipitated flights to and from Luton airport to be suspended on Tuesday night time.

The blaze, which precipitated a terminal vehicle park to in part give draw, was as soon as declared a first-rate incident. The airport has said flights can be suspended till 3pm on Wednesday.

PA news company prognosis of flight data websites found at least 140 flights due to take off or land at Luton Airport were cancelled because the fire started.

An extra 17 arrivals were diverted to airports together with Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick, Liverpool John Lennon, Manchester and Stansted.

That draw round 25,000 passengers were affected.

The worst affected airlines were Wizz Air and easyJet, which operate essentially the most flights at Luton Airport.

Luton airport’s internet jabber is currently down as a results of excessive visitors.

Visitors are being told they face a wait of up to six minutes sooner than having access to the get jabber.

A message reads: “We are experiencing a excessive volume of visitors and the employ of a virtual queue to limit the amount of users on the get jabber at the equivalent time. This can be obvious you maybe can bear the correct imaginable on-line journey.”

Crews bear managed and extinguished the fire at Luton Airport. Four crews and an aerial appliance dwell at the scene. All flights are suspended till 3pm. In the occasion you maybe can bear a flight leaving sooner than 3pm, please design no longer bolt. Please set aside faraway from the station owing to severe visitors delays. pic.twitter.com/ji5HR1Qmug

— Beds Fireplace and Rescue (@BedsFire) October 11, 2023

All flights to and from Luton Airport were suspended till 3pm after a first-rate fire precipitated a multi-story vehicle park to in part give draw.

Up to 1,500 automobiles were affected as flames ripped by the third floor of the airport’s newly built Terminal Automotive Park 2.

A major incident was as soon as declared after a blaze broke out at round 9pm on Tuesday, as all flights were suspended and a few planes diverted to other airports.

5 folks, together with four firefighters, were admitted to hospitals in Luton and Dunstable for smoke inhalation. Any other patient was as soon as discharged at the scene.

Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue said the vehicle park had suffered a “main structural give draw” as greater than 100 firefighters tackled the flames.

Be taught more here.

Andrew Hopkinson, chief fire officer for Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier, said greater than 100 firefighters tackled the blaze at Luton Airport.

Speaking to journalists at the scene, he said: “Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue Carrier’s fire regulate obtained an preliminary 999 name at 8.47pm the earlier day evening, reporting a vehicle on fire on the third floor of the Terminal vehicle park two at the support of me here at London Luton Airport.

“Our first two fire appliances arrived on scene perfect a coloration below 10 minutes later to work alongside firefighters from Luton Airport Fireplace Carrier.

“On arrival my officers were confronted with a severe and fast spreading fire titillating a great selection of autos that ultimately unfold to more than one floor and interested a partial give draw of the vehicle park.

“The incident was as soon as declared a first-rate incident at 9.38pm. The vehicle park has a capability of perfect over 1,900 automobiles and we estimate up to 1,500 automobiles are in the affected vehicle park.

“At its height we had 15 fire appliances, over 100 firefighters and a range of specialist sources together with the one you are going to survey over my lawful-hand shoulder, with sources provided by neighbouring fire and rescue products and providers.”

The Telegraph can be offering live updates on a first-rate fire in a vehicle park at Luton airport which has considered all fights suspended till 3pm.

A major incident was as soon as declared after a blaze broke out at round 9pm on Tuesday.

Bedfordshire Fireplace and Rescue said the vehicle park had suffered a “main structural give draw” as greater than a hundred firefighters tackled the flames.

5 folks, together with four firefighters, were admitted to hospitals in Luton and Dunstable for smoke inhalation. Any other patient was as soon as discharged at the scene.