Two helicopters collided Tuesday morning while landing at a high-altitude heliport in Nepal near Mount Everest. Nepalese police said a 47-year-old Indian national was killed in the accident near the "roof of the world."
Dramatic footage purportedly showing the moment of impact spread across social media and went viral. Watch:
The moment two helicopters collided in Nepal
(Video: from X)
The deadly collision occurred at a helipad in Solukhumbu district, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the capital, Kathmandu. The video shows the rotor blades of the two helicopters striking each other moments before landing, sending both aircraft crashing onto the snow-covered ground. Indian broadcaster NDTV said it could not independently verify the authenticity of the footage. The helicopters were operated by Fishtail Air and Dynasty Air.
According to The Kathmandu Post, the victim was identified as Vasanth Kumar Balaramaramadu, a 47-year-old Indian national. Local police confirmed that he was a resident of Chennai, India. Nabin Raja Budhathoki, the police chief in Solukhumbu district, told AFP: "One foreigner is dead on the spot, and another injured person has been taken to the hospital."
Small helicopters are widely used in Nepal to transport tourists, climbers and supplies, as well as to carry out emergency evacuations. The country's challenging mountainous terrain and rapidly changing weather conditions make aviation operations particularly hazardous. Flying helicopters in Nepal's mountainous regions, as well as in neighboring India, is especially difficult because of the thin air at high altitudes.
Just days ago, a helicopter crashed shortly after taking off from Badrinath in India's Uttarakhand state, another high-altitude area where thin air makes flying particularly challenging. All six people aboard the helicopter, the pilot and five passengers, were killed.