Helicopters Play Crucial Role in Himalayan Flood Rescues

Helicopters are playing a crucial part in ongoing rescue efforts following the devastating floods in Nepal. Over the past few weeks, a mix of military and private rotorcraft operators have been flying nonstop sorties across the 30-mile corridor where floods and landslides have killed more than a thousand people, with thousands more still missing. 

Currently, Nepal’s army is only able to deploy one of its four heavy-lift Mi-17 helicopters, along with four light models, including the Airbus AS350B3 and Bell 206s. Private operators have deployed more than 20 Airbus H125s to operate rescue efforts alongside their military counterparts.

“The H125’s power-to-weight edge and ability to land on tiny Himalayan patches make it indispensable for logistics and evacuation,” Phurba Gyaltsen Sherpa, director of Heli Everest and president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, told AIN. More than 10 private helicopters remain on standby at Kathmandu Tribhuvan International Airport (VNKT) and Heli Everest operates four H125s, he added.

With many helipads washed out by the floods, helicopters are forced to land farther out on loose riverbed mud while ferrying people and equipment loads weighing more than 1,000 pounds. In narrow valleys, around five or six aircraft are operating in crowded “micro-zones.”

Crowded High-pressure Operations

“Pilots hover for clearance as ground teams mark safe spots with improvised signals,” Sherpa explained. “Strict radio discipline is essential to sequence approaches, maintain rotor-wash separation, and avoid brownout. The density of traffic makes every landing a cockpit‑coordination stress test.”

Nepal’s fleet of around 40 private helicopters is not certified for winching missions. “Winching needs trained crews and modified aircraft, so while military helicopters use hoists, most civil operators rely on low hovers and skid pickups,” said Capt. Mayuri Deshmukh of HeliGo Charters.

Another operator, Simrik Air, has strengthened its long-line capability and inbuilt techniques through a long partnership with Switzerland’s Air Zermatt. “We do sling operations. An underslung load can carry more weight than the cabin because the helicopter lifts it externally, avoiding cabin volume limits,” general manager Muralidhar Joshi told AIN.

According to Joshi, Simrik Air recently transported a rescue specialist to a hydropower tunnel. “We had to partially hover on ground on power to neutralize gravity and kept a visual reference for five hours,” he explained. “He entered 200 meters into the tunnel with six feet of deep sludge. We had to pull out and later send another team with equipment. Operations are still underway.”

In high‑altitude zones above 4,500 meters (14,760 feet), thin air limits loads, so Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority usually restricts flights to four passengers and mandates two pilots during monsoon-season rules that have been briefly lifted during the crisis. “Unfortunately, sudden Himalayan fog, rain, and wind grounded all aircraft on day one, costing critical golden hours,” said Sherpa.

With floods pushing more than three miles upstream on the Chinese side of the crisis zone, only four Harbin Z‑20 helicopters from the Tibet military command flew two sorties each in the first five days, supported by two Wing Loong uncrewed air vehicles and smaller drones deployed for mapping and search missions. 

China’s approach to mudslide rescue doctrine relies on ground excavation rather than aerial retrieval, with 43 bodies recovered as of September 7 (compared with 1,355 in Nepal). Designed for operations up to 13,000 feet, the Z‑20 is a key part of the government’s rotorcraft fleet, with up to 205 available.