---
title: "Helicopter journal"
description: "Route write-ups, pricing explainers and safety notes from the Kathmandu desk."
source: "https://gohelinepal.com/blogs"
markdown: "https://gohelinepal.com/md/blogs.md"
site: "Go Heli Nepal"
---

# Journal

- [The best time of year for an Everest Base Camp helicopter tour](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/best-time-everest-base-camp-helicopter-tour) — October and November offer the most reliable clear mornings of the year. What each season looks like from the cockpit, and when weather stops the flight. (2026-08-08)
- [Why they weigh you before a Himalayan helicopter flight](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-weight-limits-nepal) — Nepali helicopter operators commonly limit each passenger to about 75 kg (165 lb), bags included. What thin air does to lift, altitude by altitude. (2026-08-08)
- [What to pack for a helicopter return from the trail](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/what-to-pack-helicopter-trek-return) — You are going from a teahouse at 4,000 m to Kathmandu in ninety minutes. Pack for both ends, for the twenty minutes between, and for the weight limit. (2026-08-08)
- [How helicopter rescue actually works in Nepal](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/how-nepal-helicopter-rescue-works) — Who dispatches the aircraft, who pays for it, how long it takes to reach the Khumbu, and the insurance clause that catches trekkers out every season. (2026-08-08)
- [Muktinath by helicopter: a pilgrim's practical guide](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/muktinath-by-helicopter-pilgrim-guide) — Two hard days of road travel become one morning. What darshan by helicopter actually involves, the altitude at Muktinath, and why older pilgrims manage it. (2026-08-08)
- [The same flight, different prices: why comparing operators matters](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/why-compare-helicopter-operators-nepal) — Certified operators quote the same Everest morning and their prices differ by about fifteen per cent. Where the spread comes from, and what you can change. (2026-08-08)
- [The only helicopter landing on the summit of Everest](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/only-helicopter-landing-everest-summit) — In May 2005 a test pilot put an AS350 B3 on the summit and held it there four minutes. Twenty years on nobody has repeated it, and nobody sells it. (2026-08-08)
- [Lukla Airport runway length: 527 m, uphill at 11.7%](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/lukla-airport-runway-explained) — Lukla's runway is 527 m (1,729 ft) long, climbs 11.7% uphill and sits at 2,845 m (9,334 ft). Why it is built that way, and why there is no go-around. (2026-08-08)
- [The insurance clause that voids your helicopter evacuation](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/travel-insurance-helicopter-evacuation-nepal) — Two numbers decide whether your policy pays for the flight: the altitude limit and the evacuation cap. Most travellers have read neither before flying. (2026-08-08)
- [Everest temperature month by month, from base camp to the summit](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/everest-temperature-month-by-month) — Everest's summit averages about −36 °C (−33 °F) in January and −19 °C (−2 °F) in July. Base camp and summit temperatures for every month, in one table. (2026-08-11)
- [If the engine quits at 5,500 m](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/autorotation-at-altitude) — A helicopter without an engine is not a brick. What autorotation is, why thin air makes it harder, and what a pilot plans for on every high approach. (2026-08-13)
- [Shared seat or whole helicopter: what the extra buys](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/shared-seat-vs-private-charter-everest) — An Everest charter costs seven to eight times one seat and carries five, so it never works out cheaper. What the extra money buys, and when it is worth it. (2026-08-15)
- [Nepal Flood 2026, what Rasuwa lost and how the helicopter rescue was run](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/nepal-flood-2026-rasuwa-helicopter-rescue) — A flood with no rain behind it took the only road into Rasuwa on 26 August. What it destroyed, and how the district was reached by air in the first week. (2026-08-31)
- [What a helicopter can actually do in Nepal's thin air](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-capability-performance-and-aircraft) — Airbus certifies the H125 to 7,010 m and to a hover out of ground effect at 3,840 m. Everything about flying in Nepal sits between those two numbers. (2026-09-07)
- [How high can a helicopter fly, and where does it stop?](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/how-high-can-a-helicopter-fly-service-ceiling-explained) — The record is 12,442 m (40,820 ft); the H125 is certified to 7,010 m (23,000 ft). Why a spec-sheet ceiling is not where a helicopter can hover or land. (2026-09-11)
- [How helicopters perform in Nepal](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/how-helicopters-perform) — Airbus gives the H125 a maximum cruise speed of 136 knots. The never-exceed speed falls as the aircraft climbs, and the flown figure is lower again. (2026-09-16)
- [Didier Delsalle's Everest helicopter record, in numbers](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/didier-delsalle-and-the-highest-helicopter-landing-ever-made) — On 14 May 2005 an AS350 B3 settled on Everest's 8,848 m summit for 3 minutes 50 seconds. The FAI ratified a take-off record, not a landing one. (2026-09-14)
- [How Fast Do Helicopters Fly?](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/how-fast-do-helicopters-fly) — Most helicopters cruise between 110 and 140 knots. Airbus gives the H125, the type flying Nepal's Khumbu, a fast cruise of 136 knots, 252 km/h. (2026-09-18)
- [Helicopter Rotors: Blade Count, RPM and Why It Matters at Altitude](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-rotors-blade-count-rpm-and-why-it-matters-at-altitude) — A helicopter's main rotor turns in the low hundreds of rpm — the H125 at 385 to 394. Altitude does not move that band. It moves what the band is worth. (2026-09-21)
- [Helicopter Payload, Weight and Seating Capacity](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-payload-weight-and-seating-capacity) — Airbus gives the H125 a useful load of 1,075 kg, and 425 kg of that is fuel. Above 3,840 m the placard weight stops binding and power takes over. (2026-09-23)
- [The helicopters used in Nepal, type by type](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/the-helicopters-that-fly-in-nepal) — Seven helicopter types do effectively all of Nepal's civil flying. What separates them is the hover figure, not the service ceiling on the brochure. (2026-09-25)
- [Aircraft registrations you will see on a Nepal helipad](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/aircraft-registrations-you-will-see-on-a-nepal-helipad) — Nepal's civil helicopters carry a 9N mark and the Army flies NA. What each prefix means, where to read it on an airframe, and what it does not prove. (2026-09-28)
- [The AS350 B3 over Everest, and what it does the rest of the year](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/the-airbus-as350-b3-nepals-himalayan-workhorse) — Airbus gives the AS350 B3 a hover ceiling of 3,840 m at full weight. Nepal's fleet flew 50,000 hours on the type anyway. What each figure is quoted at. (2026-09-30)
- [Helicopter Charter and Transfers in Nepal](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-charter-and-transfers-in-nepal) — A charter is the whole aircraft, billed by the hour of block time. What a Nepali quote is built from, and who pays when the weather holds it. (2026-10-02)
- [Helicopter Flight Time Calculator for Nepal Routes](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-flight-time-calculator-for-nepal-routes) — Distance over cruise speed is the first step and not the answer. How to work out a helicopter flight time in Nepal, and the two corrections it needs. (2026-10-09)
- [Helicopter Companies in Nepal: the Four Kinds](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-operators-and-services-in-nepal) — Four kinds of company stand between you and a helicopter in Nepal, and only one holds the certificate. How to tell which one you are buying from. (2026-10-16)
- [Helicopter Transfers and Point-to-Point Routes](https://gohelinepal.com/blogs/helicopter-transfers-and-point-to-point-routes) — A transfer is the whole aircraft flown as a journey rather than a circuit. Where they go in Nepal, and why the empty return leg sets the timing. (2026-10-19)