Incident Details
On 24 August 2019, a Boeing 777-36 (registration G-STBB) was en route from London Heathrow Airport to New York JFK Airport when, during the initial cruise phase, the senior cabin crew member alerted the captain of a suspected fire in the aft galley. Blue smoke was observed emanating from an oven unit.
Response
The cabin crew executed their fire drill procedures, and the flight crew completed the 'smoke, fire or fumes' checklist. ATC was notified of the event. Electrically isolating the aft galley reduced the rate of smoke production, but smoke persisted in the area. The captain decided to divert to Shannon, Ireland, where an uneventful overweight landing and disembarkation took place. There were no injuries to the 17 crew or 302 passengers on board.
Engineering Examination
Operator engineers examined the aft galley oven and determined that an electrical fault in an oven fan unit had caused the smoke. The faulty fan unit was replaced, and the aircraft returned to service. No further investigation of the oven fan unit was conducted by the operator.