Fulfilling Chinese COVID testing requirements while transiting at Heathrow, London

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I am beginning to wonder if it is at all possible to fulfill the testing requirements with the itinerary I have booked (which makes me wonder why they would even sell me this ticket).

It is not guaranteed that you can fulfill the predeparture and entry requirements.

It is unfortunately your responsibility to ensure you are keeping up with the ever-changing requirements, and for China, requirements with strict policies that differ by consular districts. Yes, Chinese different consulates within the same country can require different things! For example, the consulate in Toronto requires two tests at two different test centres, while the consulate in Vancouver allows the testing at the same centre (and the consulate in Vancouver specified approved centres, while Toronto allows all provincially approved centres). And if you take the flight from Toronto to Vancouver then to China, it is the Toronto consulate's rules that apply. But in other countries, it may be the rules of the final point of departure towards China that count.

For predeparture requirements to China, although some consistency can be observed recently, every consulate can change everything about the requirements. For example, the hours or days required (some consulates count by calendar day, some by hours), whether nasopharyngeal swab is required, whether there are lists of permissible test centres, whether the testing reagents need to be on the report, how past infections are treated, special rules for connecting passengers etc.

The airlines, put simply, do not care about this. Even when most Chinese consulates (before summer 2022) prohibited connecting passengers from countries with direct flights available, the airlines are happy to sell you flights with connections in countries with direct flight to China. In their defence, they cannot predict the rules at the time of flight in the future.

If you book tickets from Chinese airlines or OTAs, there is usually a warning regarding the current (but not future) rules in effect.

For your specific case,

The transit time at Heathrow is only 4 hours and 25 minutes,

given the current political climate in China, I would say with almost certainty that this is not a possible itinerary if you are taking the flights within the next couple months (at least until after Chinese new year). There is even not enough time for the embassy or consulate to process your application before the gate closes.

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