NEPAL TRAVELLER
Syangboche Airport is a domestic airport located in Namche Bazar serving the Solukhumbu district. The airport lies inside the Sagarmatha National Park.
The airstrip is not licensed for commercial operations and has limited facilities. There are no scheduled flights and most aircraft landing and departing at Syangboche are helicopters and STOL aircraft making chartered flights from Kathmandu or Lukla. Helicopter and Pilatus Porter Flight chartered services operate to and from the airport.
Syangboche is one of the most enchanting places in the world which lies in the lap of Khumbila and on the top of Namche Bazaar. The place can be reached by one hour's helicopter flight and Pilatus Porter plane flight from Kathmandu. Established in the early 2000s it is the gateway to Mount Everest and is among the many STOL airports of Nepal.
Airlines and Destinations
The flight from Lukla to Syangboche takes between 7 and 11 minute by helicopter. Lukla is the farthest point served by scheduled flights on the way to Mount Everest.
Helicopter operator companies have been playing an active role and providing chartered service to and from the airport. Syangboche is the highest point and it is advisable to reach by aircraft. It is not uncommon for people visiting Syangboche to be out of breath, due to the high altitude.
Situated at an elevation of 12,297 feet above mean sea level the airport has one runway with a length of 405 meters. Helicopters do fly further, and higher, up to Everest Base Camp, but only for picking up exhausted or injured mountaineers or dropping critical supplies.
The airstrip is the closest to Mount Everest and Everest Base Camp. However, it is not often used as this is generally not viewed as consistent with safety. It is also difficult because of its elevation for acclimatization.
The IATA and ICAO codes for Syangboche Airport are SYH and VNSB respectively.
Complied by Rina Kumari Mandal a content writer at Nepaltraveller.
Also Read
