Pioneers of Everest Skydiving

The following were the pioneering participants in the First Everest Skydive 2008.

The pioneers are noted in blue. Other names are those of members of the crew.
The credit for the success for Everest Skydive is fully shared by all of them as a group. They made a total of 41 Solo and Tandem Jumps in front of the World’s Highest Mountain, with a landing on the highest drop zone in the world, Syangboche (12,350ft.) This is a record for a fully established sport drop zone that has yet to be beaten

The Ultimate Skydive At The World’s Highest Dropzone

On the runway of the Syangboche aerodrome, our speciallly prepared Pilatus Porter P6 Turbine aircraft will be fuelled and ready for action. This aircraft simply didn't exist in Nepal before Nigel Gifford's historic first skydive expedition in 2008.





Piloting the aircraft will be a member of the Swiss Boogie team - the world's leading authority on mountain-based skydiving. Once you have suited up in your custom rig, designed by the world's leading adventure engineer, Andy Elson, you will take your place in the aircraft for take-off.
After 50 minutes, you will be soaring at an altitude of 29,000ft. The words ‘Standby’ follwed by ‘Exit’ mark the start of the adrenalin rush and the sensory overload of a lifetime.

From the same height as the very top of Mount Everest and from just a few miles away, you will have a view of this majestic peak that very few have ever been privileged to see. This is a 30 second free-fall with nothing but air between you and Everest.

Every moment of your Everest Skydive will be captured on camera - an incredible piece of film that will keep the memories alive forever.

As your canopy opens, the true euphoria of the jump will hit you. This is when you will be able to fully soak-up the vista in front of you: 100 panoramic miles of the most awe-inspiring mountains on the planet... looking out over Nepal, India and Tibet... at 140 miles per hour...

Flight Into The Mountains & A Trek To Everest Skydive

From Kathmandu, you will take a short internal flight to Lukla, a small mountain town at an altitude of 2860 metres. From here, a 5 day trek up into the Khumbu Valley must be completed. All the time, you will be gaining height and slowly acclimitising.

Walking along the steep, winding trail, you will encounter mountain porters and yak herders, peaceful villages and friendly locals. Local culture will sink in as you pass by mountain shrines and stay overnight in our selected local teahouses.

The scenery is truly stunning as you climb higher towards Everest.

Evenings are usually spent together as an expedition team. Dinner is taken in the teahouse, but where possible, there will be the chance to explore the local sites, stores and amenities. As the night draws in, your hosts will share stories from Sherpa folklore.

Over the course of your trek, the Captive Adventure team will monitor your rate of ascent to ensure you acclimatise safely.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The path is carefully planned and an experienced mountain doctor will be permanently on-hand to deal with any signs of altitude sickness.

On day 5 we will reach Syangboche, the base of all operations for Everest Skydive. Once at the drop zone, our hand-picked team of experts will help you make final preparations.

The Story of the Original Everest Skydive

In 2008, Nigel Gifford OBE organised the first ever Everest Skydive. In doing so, he established the the Shyangboche 'Everest' Dropzone in association with the Nepali government.

By Oct 11th 2008, 25 people jumped the 'Everest' DZ successfully and safely as a result of Nigel's meticulous planning, logistics and expertise.

At the time, Nigel had to arrange for a Pilatus Porter aircraft to fly in from Switzerland for his clients to be able to reach the required altitude for the jump.
First account of the first ever Everest Skydive
In February 2007 I flew to Nepal for a day to see the then Minister of Tourism, Culture and Aviation, Pradeep Gawalai. This was to ask for a permit for TV adventure presenter Bear Grylls and Gilo Caradozo to fly two para motors along the Chukung Valley in front of the Nuptse /Lhotse Wall, part of the Mt Everest Massif to a height ceiling of 30,000ft.

In 2007 permits for Sport Aviation in Nepal had become extremely difficult to secure as a French piloted helicopter had allegedly landed on the Summit of Everest without the correct permissions.

Due to my long-standing relationship with Nepal, a permit was granted to me as an individual. This made me responsible for the actions of the pilots, the team, and the film crew of " GKN Mission Everest”. It was an outstanding success for the team, Nepal and the local people of Solu Khumbu.

While delivering my report to the Secretary of CAAN, it was mentioned that any other air sport adventure activity that I could introduce to Nepal, would be looked upon favourably.

It was now clear that a skydiving programme in Solu Khumbu near to Everest was a possibility if the proper approaches were made and the correct formalities adhere to. I made a full reconnaissance on the ground and from the air from an MI17 helicopter before travelling back to UK to start the detailed

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


reconnaissance on the ground and from the air from an MI17 helicopter before travelling back to UK to start the detailed planning and applications.

This was followed in 2008 by another reconnaissance, of which the purpose was to familiarize others, evaluate parachuting equipment in situ, test the proposed O2 system, and see how westerners would adapt and work together in this unusual environment.

Once established on the DZ, we were outnumbered by officials who had come to observe what skydiving was. We realised that undertaking and planning an Everest Skydive was an absolute privilege for all concerned, with enormous trust from all the various government departments, officials, and the people of Namche Bazar and the Dhud Khosi Valley