On May 14, 2005, Didier Delsalle, a French fighter pilot and helicopter test pilot, made an extraordinary achievement in the history of aviation. Delsalle became the first and only person to land a helicopter on the summit of Mount Everest, the world's highest peak.
The helicopter used for the historic landing was the Eurocopter AS350 Squirrel. Delsalle used an almost standard version of Eurocopter, removing only unnecessary elements, such as the passenger seat, which reduced the standard weight by 120 kg (265 lbs) and thus extended fuel range by an hour.
On May 14, 2005, at 07:08 AM NPT (01:23 UTC), Delsalle set the world record for the highest altitude landing of a helicopter when his Eurocopter AS350 Squirrel was at the summit of Mount Everest at an altitude of 8,848 meters (29,029 feet). The flight and ascent to the summit were recorded by a large number of cameras and other equipment to verify the recording.
This achievement required extensive testing in the field, especially due to the low atmospheric pressure of the helicopter's rotors, wind speeds of more than 299 km/h (186 mph) at these altitudes, and the depletion of oxygen from Delsar and his helicopter engines. Delsalle, who had to find areas of downdraft and updraft, said that "I found an updraft so strong that I could almost go up without power."
Second Login:
Del Salle repeated the next day, the summit of Mount Everest on May 15, 2005, to prove that the day before was not a simple stroke of luck. Conditions on the second day were much more difficult, but Delsalle chose not to wait any longer, so as not to waste the opportunity for "traditional" climbers to reach the summit of Everest in the limited good weather conditions of May.
Record
In addition to the record for the highest altitude landing of a helicopter, Delsalle also set several helicopter speed records on May 14, 2005:
The speed record for ascent to 3,000 m (9,843 ft) is 2 minutes and 21 seconds.
The speed record for ascent to 6,000 meters (19,690 feet), 5:06 seconds.
The speed record for ascent to 9,000 meters (29,530 feet), 9 minutes and 26 seconds.
The highest take-off of Mount Everest was recorded, 8,848 meters (29,030 feet) from the summit of Mount Everest.