Come autumn, Nepal will deploy heavy lifter drones to transport garbage from the 6,812-metre tall Ama Dablam, south of Everest. This will be the first commercial work an unmanned aerial vehicle does in Nepal’s high-altitude zone. The heavy lifter from China’s biggest drone maker, Da Jiang Innovations (DJI), will take on tasks traditionally handled by Sherpas.
Officials believe it will help reduce casualties on Everest. Then, in spring (March-May), DJI drones, which make sounds similar to a swarm of bees, will be put to work on Everest. It will fly to Camp I (5,943 metres) to supply ropes and ladders to prepare routes and bring garbage to the Everest base camp at 5,364 metres.
On Sunday, a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee, the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality, and the Airlift Technology Pvt Ltd for the use of advanced drone technology to efficiently manage garbage in the mountains of the Khumbu region. In April, Chinese drone maker DJI conducted the world’s first drone delivery test on Everest. “After a successful test in April, we plan to use drones commercially in the Everest region,” said Jagat Bhusal, chief administration officer of the rural municipality that hosts Everest.
The test result showed that the DJI FlyCart 30, the long-distance heavy lifter drone, could airlift 234 kg per hour between Camp I and Base Camp, a task usually accomplished by at least 14 porters in six hours. Dr.