OMM Newsroom
An Indian tourist was killed when two helicopters collided as they attempted to land in Pheriche, near Mount Everest Base Camp, two officials confirmed to the BBC.
Verified footage showed the helicopters’ blades clipping each other as the aircraft came in to land at about 08:15 local time (02:30 GMT). Pheriche is approximately 12km (7 miles) south of the base camp.
“Fishtail Air” identified the victim as Indian national Vasanth Kumar Balaramudu. The company said one of its helicopters was involved and that a passenger and the aircraft’s captain were injured.
The injured passengers and crew members were rescued and taken to Kathmandu, “Fishtail Air” said in a statement. The injured passenger was a tourist from New Zealand, Bhupendra Thapa, an official of Solukhumbu district, told BBC Nepal.
The other helicopter was operated by “Air Dynasty” and was carrying cargo, the company said. It had one crew member on board, who was not injured.
Gyanendra Bhul, a spokesman for Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority, said: “It appears the accident happened when two helicopters... attempted to land at the same spot.”
The footage showed clear weather, with no visible effects from strong winds. One helicopter appeared to descend more rapidly than the other.
Helicopters are widely used for transport in Nepal because of the country’s challenging terrain, but rapidly changing weather and high altitude can make aviation operations hazardous.
Pheriche, on the trekking route to the summit of Mount Everest, is just over 4,000m (13,120ft) above sea level. Climbing expeditions to Everest and Ama Dablam are under way in the region, where autumn is a popular climbing season.
