Biman Bangladesh Airlines Flight BG201 Returns to Dhaka After Heathrow Shut Down by Power Outage

Biman Bangladesh Airlines Flight BG201, bound for London, turned back to Dhaka midway through its journey after a fire near London Heathrow Airport led to the airport's shutdown on March 21. The aircraft, a Boeing 787-9, carried 267 passengers on board, a figure that includes the pilot and crew.

The flight left Dhaka at 08:42 local time and made a brief stop at Sylhet at 09:06 local time. It departed Sylhet toward London at 10:46 local time, then turned back midway because of an unexpected power failure at Heathrow, which caused the airport's shutdown and significant delays and operational difficulties.

The aircraft returned to Dhaka at 13:15 local time, according to officials at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. Biman operates four weekly flights on the Dhaka-London-Dhaka route via Sylhet.

When a hub airport closes with little notice, the aircraft most exposed are long-haul flights already past the point of easy diversion. A widebody like the 787-9 on a Dhaka-to-London sector has to weigh fuel, alternate airports and crew duty hours, and a return to the origin is often the option that keeps all three inside limits. The cost lands on the carrier even though the cause sits entirely outside its control.

The exposure is sharper for an airline running a route only four times a week. Each cancelled or returned rotation takes out a large share of that week's capacity, and passengers have fewer alternative departures to be rebooked onto. A carrier with daily frequencies can absorb a disrupted day more easily than one with a handful of weekly slots.

The next fact that would sharpen the picture is when the affected rotation operates again and how Biman handles the displaced passengers and crew.