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80th ANNIVERSARY OF FIRST FLIGHT OVER EVEREST CELEBRATED IN NEPAL

Posted on Apr 8, 2013 by TravelNews under News and Events

Tags: Flight,Everest,Anniversary

Nepal commemorated the 80th anniversary of the first flight over Mount Everest on 3 April 1933 – 9 years after Mallory and Irvine had disappeared trying to climb the mountain. The flight aimed to map Everest to allow a successful ascent, and twenty years later Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay used their photographs on their historic climb. The mountain flight that took in the morning of April 3, 2013 was operated by Yeti Airlines to celebrate it.

The 1933 expedition was commanded by Air Commodore Peregrine Fellowes, the great-uncle of Julian Fellowes, writer of TV’sDownton Abbey. The flight was carried out by two intrepid Scottish volunteers from the Royal (Auxiliary) Air Force – David Fowler McIntyre and Lord Clydesdale, future Duke of Hamilton.

Two years after their Everest flight the two pilots founded an airport in Prestwick, Scotland, and a aircraft factory, Scottish Aviation Ltd.( which  later  became BAE Systems), which built the Pioneer, the Twin Pioneer – and the Jetstream-41.
On April 3, 2013 Lord Clydesdale’s grandson, Charles Douglas Hamilton, accompanied by a team from Prestwick World Festival of Flight and the national/international media corps, took Yeti Airlines’ flight over Everest in a Jetstream-41 aircraft built by Scottish Aviation Ltd. at Prestwick. The flightwas hosted by Yeti Airlines and the participation of Charles Douglas-Hamilton and the Festival team was facilitated by BAE Systems Regional Aircraft Prestwick, successor to Scottish Aviation Ltd.
‘It was astounding to see the mountain and appreciate the sort of risks taken by the expedition pilots in the pursuit of advancing science and aviation. I will be back to trek with some friends and explore the mountains,’ said Charles Douglas-Hamilton.
‘This was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life,’ said George Kerevan, ex-Chairman of the Edinburgh Tourist Board. ‘Everyone should take the flight over Everest before they die.’
‘Yeti Airlines made us so welcome, and their Jetstream's-41 give a perfect view of the Himalayas,’ said Angela Wrapson, Festival Producer. We felt so safe and comfortable that it was difficult to imagine what the first pilots had to endure, with their heated suits and open-cockpit planes, which were at the mercy of the winds off the mountains.’
‘We had an amazing view of Everest. I was honoured to be a part of this special event,’ said Umesh Chandra Rai, Group General Manager. ‘On behalf of the company, I would like to congratulate Captain Bodh Raj Niroula, Flight Officer Kiran Man Pradhan, and Air Hostess Haseena Shrestha for a perfect flight.’
Nepal Tourism Board and Yeti Airlines jointly organized a press conference after the flight to share the experience and to commemorate it.
Source: Nepal Tourism Board

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