Itinerary
Transfer to the airport
You are picked up at your hotel about 2 hours prior departure. It will be approximately 30 minutes drive from your hotel to the airport. You are required to check in minimum 1 hour prior departure.
As the plan takes off
If it goes well with weather and traffic controller gives go ahead sign, then the flight takes off and heads north east upon and in less than 10 minutes, you will get the first glimpse of the snowy white peaks on the far left while below the hill slopes acquire a rocky rugged and barren look, like empty landscapes from another world. Within the next few minutes, you are already flying above the snowy outlines of the greater Himalaya at an altitude of 25000 feet above the ground.
Enjoy the great views of Himalayas
The first ones to come to view are the peaks straight north of Kathmandu Valley, starting with the 8013m high Shisha Pangma, the 14th highest mountain in the world, which is actually located in Tibet, a few kilometers from the border. Then come a series of several smaller peaks beginning with Dorje Lakpa (6966m) which looks like the figure eight and is located on the eastern edge of Langtang National Park, followed by Phurbi Ghyachu (6637m) on its right, the 5970m Choba Bhamare which remains unconquered, Gauri Shankar (7134m) named after Lord Shiva and his consort, Melungtse (7181m) all part of the Rolwaling range.
Mount Everest-the goal of this flight
For most distinguishing one peak from another doesn’t come easy. But Everest is something else. Known simply as Peak XV until 1856, the Great Trigonometric Survey of India established the first published the height of Everest. As Nepal and Tibet were both closed to foreigners the British Surveyor General of India at that time named it Everest after Sir George Everest who measured its height and pinpointed its location. The local names of the world’s highest peak though pay tribute to her majesty; the Nepali name Sagarmatha means “mother of the skies” while the Tibetan name Chomolongma means ‘mother of the universe”. In 1999 Everest was found to have grown by at least six inches since the last survey bringing its total height to 8850m possibly due to the same plate tectonic movements that raised the Himalaya from the bed of the Tethys Sea.
Jutting up behind Lhotse (8516m) and Nuptse (7855m) Everest is as distinct as is it should be for a mountain of its status. Even from a distance of 5 nautical miles one can clearly see why thousands are obsessed with the thought of conquering it. While most mountaineers still use the southeast ridge on the Nepal side considered to be technically easier to reach the summit, the northeast ridge which takes off from Tibet is also increasingly becoming popular.
Those who trek up to the Everest Base Camp located at height of 5380m may proudly state that they have been there but viewing the Himalaya from on board a mountain flight is another experience altogether.
Return journey
As the flight begins to head back to Kathmandu one cannot but help contemplate that we have but one earth and we must all work towards preserving its natural beauty for our children.
Transfer back to your hotel
Upon return to the airport, you will meet your transport and drive back to your hotel
Cost Includes
1 hour long mountain flight
Round trip airport transfer ( 1 time only)
Everest flight certificate
Cost Does Not Include
If the flight is canceled due to weather or for some reason and if you reschedule your flight for some other day, you will have to pay US$ 10 for each time.
