Two helicopters collide near Pheriche, killing one person
A commercial cargo craft and a passenger helicopter crashed during a landing attempt at high altitude in Solukhumbu district, leaving three others injured.
By Kendra Wilson ·
Two helicopters collided while attempting to land at a helipad in Pheriche, Nepal, on Tuesday morning. The crash killed one person and injured three others, according to the Nepal Police.
The incident occurred at a helipad located in the Solukhumbu district, which sits at an altitude of approximately 4,200 meters. Nabin Raja Budhathoki, the deputy superintendent of police for Solukhumbu, confirmed that the site is on the route to an Everest base camp. A livestream weather camera captured the collision shortly after 8 a.m. local time.
One aircraft was a commercial cargo helicopter operated by Air Dynasty, flying from Lukla to Pheriche. The pilot was the only person on board. The second helicopter, operated by Fishtail Air, was returning from an Everest base camp. It carried a pilot and two foreign passengers.
Police identified the fatality as Vasanth Kumar Balaramudu, a resident of Chennai, India. The other passenger, Shailesh Krishan Patel of New Zealand, suffered serious injuries. He was airlifted directly to Nepal Mediciti Hospital in Kathmandu.
Both pilots were injured in the crash. The pilot from Fishtail Air was transported to a hospital near Kathmandu, while the Air Dynasty pilot is being treated in Lukla.
The accident occurred during Nepal's prime autumn trekking season. The country is currently recovering from a monsoon period that included deadly flash floods in late August.
Source: KTRK-TV · original report published
