Six killed in Nepal helicopter crash

Retrieved bodies have yet to be identified

A Manang Air helicopter crashed during its journey from Solukhumbu to Kathmandu. Photo: Manang Air

All six people on board a tourist helicopter in Nepal have been confirmed dead after it crashed near Mount Everest on Tuesday.

The private commercial helicopter operated by Manang Air had taken off from the Surke Airport in Solukhumbu district at 10am, bound for Kathmandu.

It was carrying five Mexican citizens who were on a sightseeing tour of the world’s highest peak.

The helicopter was being flown by Captain Chet Bahadur Gurung, who reportedly had more than two decades of flying experience.

"Six bodies have been found at the crash site," Gyanendra Bhul of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal told AFP.

Search teams were deployed on foot to recover the bodies due to poor weather conditions preventing aircraft from landing in the area.

Less than 10 minutes into the journey, the helicopter lost contact at an altitude of 12,000 metres, said Gyanendra Bhul, manager at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu.

The aircraft crashed in the Lamajura area.

The retrieved bodies are yet to be identified.

Locals said they had informed authorities after hearing a loud noise and seeing a ball of fire and smoke at the crash site.

Manang Air has been operating commercial helicopter flights in Nepal since 1997. It provides chartered services, including adventure flights and expeditions.

Nepal has a poor flight safety record, with outdated infrastructure and a lack of investment in new aircraft.

In January, a twin-engine aircraft carrying 68 passengers, including 15 foreign citizens and 53 Nepalese, as well as four crew members, crashed into a 300m deep gorge in Pokhara in one of the deadliest plane crashes the country had seen in 30 years.

All 72 people on board the aircraft were killed.