diff --git a/.changesets/fix_bnjjj_fix_fatal_error_subgraph_response.md b/.changesets/fix_bnjjj_fix_fatal_error_subgraph_response.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..9e09db2866
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changesets/fix_bnjjj_fix_fatal_error_subgraph_response.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+### fix(subgraph_service): when the subgraph connection is closed or in error, return a proper subgraph response ([PR #5859](https://github.com/apollographql/router/pull/5859))
+
+When the subgraph connection is closed or in error, return a proper subgraph response containing an error. This was preventing subgraph response service to be triggered in coprocessor and rhai.
+
+By [@bnjjj](https://github.com/bnjjj) in https://github.com/apollographql/router/pull/5859
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/apollo-router/src/services/subgraph_service.rs b/apollo-router/src/services/subgraph_service.rs
index c2274f6bc8..5d8fae1ede 100644
--- a/apollo-router/src/services/subgraph_service.rs
+++ b/apollo-router/src/services/subgraph_service.rs
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ use http::header::{self};
 use http::response::Parts;
 use http::HeaderValue;
 use http::Request;
+use http::StatusCode;
 use hyper_rustls::ConfigBuilderExt;
 use itertools::Itertools;
 use mediatype::names::APPLICATION;
@@ -871,9 +872,34 @@ pub(crate) async fn process_batch(
     // Perform the actual fetch. If this fails then we didn't manage to make the call at all, so we can't do anything with it.
     tracing::debug!("fetching from subgraph: {service}");
     let (parts, content_type, body) =
-        do_fetch(client, &batch_context, &service, request, display_body)
+        match do_fetch(client, &batch_context, &service, request, display_body)
             .instrument(subgraph_req_span)
-            .await?;
+            .await
+        {
+            Ok(res) => res,
+            Err(err) => {
+                let resp = http::Response::builder()
+                    .status(StatusCode::INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR)
+                    .body(err.to_graphql_error(None))
+                    .map_err(|err| FetchError::SubrequestHttpError {
+                        status_code: None,
+                        service: service.clone(),
+                        reason: format!("cannot create the http response from error: {err:?}"),
+                    })?;
+                let (parts, body) = resp.into_parts();
+                let body =
+                    serde_json::to_vec(&body).map_err(|err| FetchError::SubrequestHttpError {
+                        status_code: None,
+                        service: service.clone(),
+                        reason: format!("cannot serialize the error: {err:?}"),
+                    })?;
+                (
+                    parts,
+                    Ok(ContentType::ApplicationJson),
+                    Some(Ok(body.into())),
+                )
+            }
+        };
 
     let subgraph_response_event = batch_context
         .extensions()
@@ -1283,9 +1309,21 @@ pub(crate) async fn call_single_http(
 
     // Perform the actual fetch. If this fails then we didn't manage to make the call at all, so we can't do anything with it.
     let (parts, content_type, body) =
-        do_fetch(client, &context, service_name, request, display_body)
+        match do_fetch(client, &context, service_name, request, display_body)
             .instrument(subgraph_req_span)
-            .await?;
+            .await
+        {
+            Ok(resp) => resp,
+            Err(err) => {
+                return Ok(SubgraphResponse::builder()
+                    .subgraph_name(service_name.to_string())
+                    .error(err.to_graphql_error(None))
+                    .status_code(StatusCode::INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR)
+                    .context(context)
+                    .extensions(Object::default())
+                    .build());
+            }
+        };
 
     let subgraph_response_event = context
         .extensions()
@@ -1705,6 +1743,17 @@ mod tests {
         server.await.unwrap();
     }
 
+    // starts a local server emulating a subgraph returning connection closed
+    async fn emulate_subgraph_panic(listener: TcpListener) {
+        async fn handle(_request: http::Request<Body>) -> Result<http::Response<Body>, Infallible> {
+            panic!("test")
+        }
+
+        let make_svc = make_service_fn(|_conn| async { Ok::<_, Infallible>(service_fn(handle)) });
+        let server = Server::from_tcp(listener).unwrap().serve(make_svc);
+        server.await.unwrap();
+    }
+
     // starts a local server emulating a subgraph returning bad response format
     async fn emulate_subgraph_ok_status_invalid_response(listener: TcpListener) {
         async fn handle(_request: http::Request<Body>) -> Result<http::Response<Body>, Infallible> {
@@ -2421,6 +2470,44 @@ mod tests {
         assert!(response.response.body().errors.is_empty());
     }
 
+    #[tokio::test(flavor = "multi_thread")]
+    async fn test_subgraph_service_panic() {
+        let listener = std::net::TcpListener::bind("127.0.0.1:0").unwrap();
+        let socket_addr = listener.local_addr().unwrap();
+        tokio::task::spawn(emulate_subgraph_panic(listener));
+        let subgraph_service = SubgraphService::new(
+            "test",
+            true,
+            None,
+            Notify::default(),
+            HttpClientServiceFactory::from_config(
+                "test",
+                &Configuration::default(),
+                Http2Config::Enable,
+            ),
+        )
+        .expect("can create a SubgraphService");
+
+        let url = Uri::from_str(&format!("http://{socket_addr}")).unwrap();
+        let response = subgraph_service
+            .oneshot(
+                SubgraphRequest::builder()
+                    .supergraph_request(supergraph_request("query"))
+                    .subgraph_request(subgraph_http_request(url, "query"))
+                    .operation_kind(OperationKind::Query)
+                    .subgraph_name(String::from("test"))
+                    .context(Context::new())
+                    .build(),
+            )
+            .await
+            .unwrap();
+        assert!(!response.response.body().errors.is_empty());
+        assert_eq!(
+            response.response.body().errors[0].message,
+            "HTTP fetch failed from 'test': HTTP fetch failed from 'test': connection closed before message completed"
+        );
+    }
+
     #[tokio::test(flavor = "multi_thread")]
     async fn test_subgraph_service_invalid_response() {
         let listener = std::net::TcpListener::bind("127.0.0.1:0").unwrap();