Ama Dablam Base Camp
4,600 m
Lukla
2,845 m
15 mins
7:30 AM
$500
per seat
$1,600
aircraft
CAAN licensed
Free weather reschedule
Rescue capable
Pheriche to Lukla helicopter flight
Pheriche
4,371 m
Lukla
2,845 m
- Flight time
- 18 mins
- Seats
- 5
- Baggage
- 12 kg
- From
- $400
Flight overview
Flying Pheriche to Lukla helicopter flight
| Route | Departs | Seats | Flight time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pheriche to Lukla helicopter flight | 7:30 AM | 5 | 18 mins |
Eighteen minutes from a windswept valley floor at 4,371 metres to the trailhead at Lukla. This is the cheapest way off the upper Khumbu trail, and for trekkers who have decided to stop at Dingboche or Pheriche rather than push on to base camp, it is usually the right one.
The flight follows the Imja Khola down past Pangboche and Tengboche, picks up the Dudh Kosi below Namche and runs into Lukla. You lose fifteen hundred metres, and the change in how you feel is immediate.
Why people take it
Some because the altitude has beaten them and the aid post has told them to go down. Some because a group has split and one half is continuing. Some because a schedule slipped three days ago and the maths no longer works.
Connecting onward
If you are heading for Kathmandu, booking this leg and then the Lukla to Kathmandu flight separately usually works out cheaper than the direct Pheriche to Kathmandu fare, at the cost of an hour or two in Lukla. If you are unwell, take the direct flight instead. The extra money buys you two thousand metres of descent without a stop.
A reliable little flight
Short descending legs like this one cancel less than long transits. The window needed at either end is small and the aircraft is already working in the valley. When the weather is marginal, this is often the flight that still goes.
- From
- Pheriche
- To
- Lukla
- Aircraft
- AS350 B3e / H125
- Passenger insurance
- Included
- Flight rules
- Visual, daylight only
Pilot advisory
A short descending leg that is among the more reliable flights in the valley, because it loses altitude the whole way and does not need a large window at the far end. The single scheduled departure is early to stay ahead of the Pheriche wind.
Pricing
What this flight costs, and what it does not include
Both figures are the price we quote on WhatsApp. A shared seat puts you on a scheduled departure with other travellers. A private charter is the whole aircraft on your schedule.
Included
- Confirmed seat or aircraft on the stated departure
- All government taxes on the charter
- Passenger liability insurance
- Pilot and crew
- Free rescheduling if the flight is held for weather
Not included
- Personal travel and medical insurance
- Meals, accommodation and ground transport
- National park permits and TIMS cards
- Excess baggage above the stated allowance
- Anything arising from a delay outside our control
We publish how these prices are set and when they move. Read the price transparency policy.
Operators
CAAN licensed operators
We charter aircraft only from operators that hold a current air operator certificate from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Each one below is reviewed by us before we put passengers on their aircraft.
Air Dynasty Heli Services
Manang Air
Simrik Air
Mountain Helicopters
Altitude Air
Heli Everest
Kailash Helicopter Services
Prabhu Helicopter
Upcoming departures
The next flights on this route
All departures are subject to visual flight rules and weather. Seat counts are confirmed with operators each morning.
Landing site
Where you land at Lukla
- Helipad
- Tenzing-Hillary Airport helipad
- Area
- Khumbu, Everest region
- Altitude
- 2,845 m
- Coordinates
- 27.68690, 86.72970
The airstrip is 527 metres long, slopes uphill at around twelve degrees, and ends in a rock face. Helicopters use the pad adjacent to the apron rather than the runway itself. Stay behind the marked line until the rotor has stopped and approach only from the front, where the crew can see you.
Safety
What you need to know before you board
A short flight, but a high-altitude departure. The aircraft is lifting out of 4,371 metres and the crew’s weight decisions on the morning are final.
Baggage is twelve kilos per passenger on a shared seat. If you are carrying expedition equipment, tell us in advance rather than arriving with it at the pad.
The Pheriche pad is exposed and cold. Keep your jacket accessible and your loose items secured before the aircraft arrives.
Questions
What travellers ask about this route
Two days. Pheriche to Namche to Lukla is a long descent, and this leg covers it in eighteen minutes.
Because the aircraft stays in the valley. It is a short shuttle between two pads it was already near, rather than an hour-long transit and an hour back.
Yes, if you are on the early departure. Book the Lukla to Kathmandu leg as a second flight and allow an hour between them. Booking the two separately is often cheaper than the direct Pheriche to Kathmandu fare.
In October and April, usually within a day. Outside the seasons, we may need to run it as a charter or match you with an aircraft already moving.
Tell us the night before and we will release the seat without charge. We would much rather you walked out under your own steam.
Hold a seat
Request this flight
No payment now. Tell us the date and the group, and we will come back with a confirmed aircraft, a confirmed price and a deposit link.
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