'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
On Tuesday, July 11, five Mexican tourists and a Nepali pilot died in a helicopter near the Mount Everest region of Nepal. According to CBS, the six victims were aboard a private commercial helicopter tour operated by Manang Air. The aircraft took off at 9:45 am on Tuesday, before it reportedly crashed while on the way back to Kathmandu.
The incident is currently under investigation by Nepal's Civil Aviation authorities. The circumstances behind the crash remain unconfirmed.
As reported by CNN, officials said that the weather conditions did not appear extreme on the day of the crash. They are still speculating about the circumstances that may have led up to the incident. As of July 12, authorities have not disclosed the victims identities. It is believed that there were three women among the Mexican tourists.
The timeline of the fatal Mount Everest helicopter crash
According to The Wall Street Journal, the helicopter was on a routine tour of Mount Everest arranged by Manang Air. Authorities reported that air traffic controllers lost contact with the helicopter at 10:13 am, approximately 30 minutes after its takeoff. Eventually, locals discovered the wreckage of the air craft in the remote district of Solukhumbu.
Teknath Sitoula, a spokesperson for Kathamndu's Tribhuvan International Airport, said that Mount Everest locals and police officers found all six of the victims deceased at the scene:
“All six bodies have been located. We are now starting the process to take them to Kathmandu. It will take some time because it means traveling by road from the crash site and then flying to Kathmandu."
Basanta Bhattarai, a bureacrat in the district of Solukhumbu, said that four of the bodies have already been sent back:
"We have already dispatched four bodies to Kathmandu in a helicopter and are preparing to send the remaining two soon."
Raju Neupane, a spokesperson for Manang Air, said that the conditions on the day of the crash appeared safe enough for a tour:
"The weather was not bad. Now we can't say what caused the crash. It will have to be investigated."
As reported by CNN, Nepal's Mount Everest region is considered a risky area to fly in due to the mountainous terrain and low visibility. In January of this year, around 70 people were killed in an aircraft crash in Pokhara, Nepal. In 2021, a crash in the same mountainside led to the deaths of 22 others. Additionally, the Flight Safety Foundation's Aviation Safety database reported that there have been 42 fatal plane crashes in Nepal since 1946.
Authorities have not mentioned the possibility of foul play in the most recent Mount Everest crash.
