Recent News & Events

Airbus Helicopter has selected our Chief Pilot/IP CAPT. Bibek Khadka photograph for "Airbus Helicopter Calendar for the year 2022".

Bollywood actors Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Parineeti Chopra and Sarika Haasan - spouse of actor Kamal Haasan are in the country to shoot for their new movie Uunchai. Suraj Acharya, Founder and Chairperson at 3 Wheelers Films - a movie production company in the Valley, said, "The actors arrived in the country on October 3 and stayed in Capital till October 7. They completed parts of the movie shooting at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) and Swoyambhu."

According to Acharya, the foursome then flew on an Altitude Air helicopter from TIA at 9:30 am on October 8 to Tenzing Hillary Airport at Lukla. "They will be staying in Lukla for a month before completing their parts of the shooting for the movie," shared Acharya.

The film also stars Indian megastar Amitabh Bachchan along with renowned actors Pankaj Tripathi and Neena Gupta in lead roles, as per Acharya. Asked about how the project got initiated here, Acharya, who is also the focal person in the country for managing the shooting of the movie, said, "I have been in the entertainment industry for 30 years and have been in contact with several Indian directors for years. Hence, director Sooraj Barjatya approached me some three years ago to manage the shooting for his movie.

The pandemic halted the shooting process last year, so it is happening only now. "According to Acharya, the film is based on friendship where actor Danny Denzongpa will portray a local of Solukhumbu. Major parts of the movie will be shot in Solukhumbu and Manang, including the Everest region.

Acharya also informed that Barjatya visited the aforementioned mountainous regions in the country earlier in September to confirm the locations for shooting and returned to India - he came to Nepal some time before the four actors arrived, and has already started shooting for the movie in the Himalayan region.

Nima Nuru Sherpa, Executive Chairperson at Altitude Air said, "It feels nice to see veteran Indian actors visiting the country to shoot a movie. This will certainly help bring the pandemic-battered tourism industry back on track by attracting tourists and also help in promoting those places where the shooting is ongoing."

Altitude Air Executive Chairman/ Accountable Manager, Mr. Nima Nuru Sherpa has been elected as the president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association. According to the final results last night, Sherpa won with 735 votes. His nearest rival Rajendra Man Shrestha polled 122 votes.

Ananda “Andy” Thapa (Operations Director)

Humanitarian Service Award, sponsored by Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, for outstanding service in using helicopters to provide aid to those in need A hero to countless individuals, Ananda “Andy” Thapa is naturally
humble. Born in the remote Dhading District in Nepal, Thapa grew up in extreme poverty. As a child, he averaged one meal a day and had no electricity, telephone, or even a nearby medical facility. He did, however, have a dream: he wanted to fly. So he worked hard in his studies, earning a spot in a Nepali Army education program in Kathmandu.

Because his family couldn’t afford higher education, Thapa enlisted in the Nepali Army’s officer program, hoping to be selected for pilot training despite it being exceptionally rare in the army. The timing was on Thapa’s side, however. Civil war broke out in Nepal during his second year of cadet officer training, creating a need for helicopter and fighter pilots. Amid fierce competition, Thapa was chosen and learned to fly helicopters.

After eight years flying in the army, Thapa accepted a civilian helicopter pilot position where he could apply his experience and understanding of the small villages, remote regions, fast-changing weather, and terrain of Nepal to perform rescues and extractions.

Thapa has since been credited with hundreds of, if not well over 1,000, technical rescues throughout Nepal and surrounding regions. He is one of the elite skilled pilots who have extracted multiple climbers from Mount Everest, landing as high as Camp 2 above 21,000 ft. (6,401 m). He participated in the much-publicized search for Bulgarian mountaineer Boyan Petrov in 2018, which unfortunately ended with no sign of Petrov.

In 2022 alone, Thapa participated in three large rescues: he airlifted several climbers from Mount Everest’s Camp 1 and Camp 2, evacuated two people at 22,349 ft. (6,812 m) from Ama Dablam using a human longline technique, and, together with another company rescue pilot, rescued 72 Nepalese and foreign visitors stranded in a remote region of Nepal by extremely bad weather.

Thapa has also helped families achieve closure. In 2018, famed mountaineer Kim Chang-ho, the first Korean to summit the world’s 14 tallest mountains without supplemental oxygen, died with eight others at the base camp of Gurja Himal in Nepal. After searchers discovered their bodies, Thapa transported them down the mountain via longline.

The one rescue that stands out the most in Thapa’s mind took place on Jun. 18, 2021. Five days before, more than 100 people had trekked to areas bordering Tibet from the Nepalese town of Manang to collect Yarsagumba, a medicinal fungus, and hadn’t returned. Thapa took the lead in the search, flying their route up the mountains. While most were feared dead, Thapa found them all alive between 14,000 ft. (4,267 m) and 17,200 ft. (5,243 m), stranded after heavy snowfall. He transported the most critical, about 70 in all, back to a lower-altitude safe zone within an incredible two hours and 20 minutes.

He also delivered a supply drop of food and other survival goods to the remaining 30 foragers as the weather deteriorated and fuel ran low. Thapa says this rescue was the most successful and also the fastest he has conducted in his career, but it is only one of countless rescues that have made the helicopter the real hero to the people of and visitors to Nepal

Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd., supported NPR. 5,55,555/- (NPR. Five Lakh FiftyFive Thousand Five Hundred Fifty-Five only) to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund for the Relief and Rehabilitation of the Jajarkot Earthquake victims which had stuck on Friday night of 3rd November 2023.

A moment magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck Jajarkot District, Karnali Province, Nepal, at 23:47 NPT (18:02 UTC) on 3 November 2023, killing 153 people and injuring at least 375.

Every day is an adventure when we fly high in the Himalayas. This time, the Altitude Air helicopter had Parabellum Tactical Training and their team for the Everest Skydive Experience.

Twelve successful loads were conducted from our Altitude Air Helicopter with multiple jump profiles, from Tandem and solo descents with our awesome customers, solo test jumps with Paretic Defense representatives, and flag jumps to promote one of our affiliated sponsors.

Each tandem customer completed two skydives, the first to experience the sensation of free-falling down the face of the world’s tallest mountain whilst looking at it, the second with Mt. Everest as the backdrop for that all-important social media post

We had the pleasure of jumping with triple amputee British Army veteran Josh Boggi. The drive and determination that this humble guy showed to not only take on the challenge of throwing himself out of a helicopter at 23,000ft but to complete one of the most physically & mentally challenging treks from Lukla to Namche Bazaar was phenomenal. In his own words, he said, “It has been one of the most difficult things he has done since learning to walk again!” An awesome effort from such an inspirational guy.

Parabellum Tactical Training would also like to mention our unbelievable Nepalese team headed up by Tenzin. These guys are the ‘beat to the drum’ of our complex expeditions and they always help to deliver a professional package from start to finish.

‘THE EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME’

Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd. achieved a remarkable milestone by completing 35 flights to Gosaikunda within seven working hours! This is an impressive feat that highlights the efficiency, skill, and dedication of the entire team of Altitude Ai. A special shoutout to Chief Pilot/ IP Capt. Bibek Khadka and Operations Director Capt. Andy Thapa for their heroic efforts in breaking this record. Their expertise and commitment have clearly played a pivotal role in this accomplishment.

Additionally, the support from clients, friends, and family, as well as the collaboration with the Image Holidays team, has been
instrumental in making this mission a success. Congratulations to everyone involved on this incredible achievement! This is a testament to teamwork, professionalism, and a shared vision of excellence.

Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd., a helicopter service provider, participated in ITB Berlin 2024, the world's largest tourism trade fair, held from 5th to 7th March at Messe Berlin, Germany, under the PATA Nepal Chapter at Hall 5.2 booth 1. Altitude Air Chief Marketing Officer/ Airport Manager Mr. Mingma T. Sherpa, along with Marketing Officer Mr. Chandra P. Pyakurel, participated in the 3-day event.

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter, in collaboration with the 40 diverse tourism and hospitality business companies from the private sector of tourism in Nepal, has played an active participation in promoting and showcasing the destination Nepal, renowned for its nature, adventure, and culture at the ITB Berlin 2024 held from 5th to 7th March at Messe Berlin, Germany.

ITB Berlin is the world’s leading and largest travel trade show and this year ITB brought together the global tourism industry buyers and trade visitors with over 5,500 exhibitors from 170 countries. Oman, the Official Host Country of ITB Berlin, impressed the audience at the official opening event with a spectacular show, promoting Oman as an attractive tourism destination.

The bodies of five Russian climbers who perished on Mt. Dhaulagiri on October 7 have been retrieved from 6,900 meters this morning.

According to Mingma Sherpa, Director at Heli Everest, long-line rescuers recovered the bodies of Alexander Dusheyko, Oleg Kruglov, Vladimir Chistikov, Mikhail Nosenko, and Dmitrii Shpilevoi. They brought them to the base camp this morning.

Mingma, the first South Asian to successfully climb all 14 of the world's 8000 meters without repeating a summit, coordinated the retrieval mission on Mt. Dhaulagiri. At the same time, the senior Helicopter Captain at Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd., IP/Chief Pilot Bibek Khadka, conducted the search and evacuation flight at 7,000 meters.

"We have successfully retrieved five bodies as they were pulled by IFMGA guide Dawa Phinjo Bhote and Lakpa Bhote," Mingma, who is now at base camp, said. The recovery mission also involved a long-line rescue specialist of Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd. Mr. Lokendra Dhami. "Dhami supported the mission from the ground at the Dhaulagiri base camp," Sherpa said.

The team stayed on the mountain since yesterday after several retrieval missions in the last week failed due to bad weather conditions. "The bodies will be airlifted to Kathmandu shortly to hand them over to their respective families," Sherpa said.

The climbers lost contact with base camp officials and fellow climbers at 11:00 am on October 6 while at an altitude of 7,600 meters on the peak, which stands at 8,167 meters. They were confirmed dead on October 8. The bodies were located at an altitude of 6,900m by a rescue helicopter. The 14-member team headed for Dhaulagiri to make an alpine-style climbing attempt through I AM Trekking & Expedition.

Earlier, Valerii Shamalo, a team member who had abandoned the summit attempt, was rescued from Camp I and brought to Kathmandu. Denis Aleksenko from Russia as well as Artsiom Tsentsevitski from Belarus had scaled Dhaulagiri on October 5 in an alpine style while six other climbers abandoned their climbing bid earlier.

On 21st October, 2024 Altitude Air, Capt. Ananda(Andy)Thapa, along with rescue specialists of Altitude Air Mr. Lokendr Dhami completed the Human Long Line from Mt. Amadablam Camp 2.

Executive Chairman/ Accountable Manager of Altitude Air Pvt. Ltd., as well as the President of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, Mr. Nima Nuru Sherpa has been elected to the board of the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA) Sherpa, being the chair of the country's only alpine club, has been elected to the General Representation of the Management Board of the UIAA, according to a statement issued by the umbrella organization of the alpine clubs. The 2024 UIAA General Assembly was held from 8-9 November in Malta and hosted by Climb MT. A total of 107 delegates from 47 countries attended the event.

By THT Online

Altitude Air wishes you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2025!!

May this holiday season bring joy, peace, and love to your life.

Fresh tracks at high altitudes! Heli-skiing in Nepal is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for adventure seekers, offering access to some of the world’s highest and most breathtaking mountain slopes. With a helicopter as your personal ski lift, you can explore untouched powder snow in the Himalayas, far from crowded, just pristine slopes. Challenging descents for experienced skiers. Helicopter Transfers to remote Himalayan peaks.

Landing on the vastness of the endless glittering white, surrounded by the massive Himalayan peaks around is really something! So prepare yourself with us for some heli-skiing fitness program for skiing around the Himalayas.