Helicopter Evacuation in Nepal | New Insurance Rules

Helicopter evacuation at Tengboche, Khumbu, Nepal

As many of you would be aware a huge scam was detected last year in the helicopter evacuations in Nepal involving insurance companies, helicopter companies, trekking agencies and hospitals.

Some of the reports in the international press are below:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/world/asia/nepal-everest-rescue-fraud.html

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/03/nepal-cracks-down-on-multimillion-dollar-helicopter-rescue-scams

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/25/world/asia/nepal-everest-insurers-fraud.html

After this scam was widely reported in the press, the Insurance companies have taken some steps to make it more difficult and costly to get an helicopter evacuation for medical reasons.

World Nomads one of the most highly respected and efficient companies also made some changes in their policies for the 2019 season which will affect many trekkers in Nepal.

These are the some of the  most important changes:

World Nomads can charge you upto a maximum of $725 for emergency helicopter evacuation in Nepal. This clause was not there before because in all the World Nomad genuine  medical evacuations I have witnessed the amount paid by the client was $100 per claim only - the wording on the site is below:

* Note - Nepal Air Ambulance /Helicopter Services: an excess of a maximum of €625 ($725)  applies to Medical transport & repatriation home (Section 1.2) in the event medical emergency evacuation by air ambulance or helicopter services are required in Nepal. 

  Further, it now seems,  and this is to be verified by World Nomads ,  that the Standard and Explorer policy types cover backpacking upto  4500 metres only. In case of backpacking upto 6000 metres (which would cover Everest Base Camp, Gokyo, Manaslu Circuit, Annapurna circuit and other high altitude treks in Nepal) an upgrade is required to the policy. For most of the Nepal treks this upgrade would be needed.

So my suggestion is that irrespective of which insurance company you choose for a trek in the high Himalaya do read the fine print and exceptions even more so now after these helicopter scams. You need to know what exactly is covered and what you have to pay for over and above the policy premium so that there are no nasty surprises when invoking the policy.

For my earlier post on helicopter charters in Nepal do visit http://sujoyrdas.blogspot.com/2019/01/everest-helicopter-charter-flights.html

South Col Expeditions runs multiple treks in Nepal every year - for more details do visit www.southcol.com

Everest | Helicopter Charter Flights

When helicopters started flying in Nepal, they were used mostly for search and rescue operations. However, in the last decade, the number of helicopter companies have increased and it is not unusual while trekking in the Everest region to find helicopters flying up and down between Gorak Shep to Pheriche/ Namche/Lukla/Kathmandu ferrying passengers on a charter flight.

Though many purists including myself  will balk at the idea of using a helicopter at the end of the Everest trek, this has become quite a common occurrence of late. The  main advantages for the trekkers are:

An Everest Base Camp trek can become 9-10 days Kathmandu to Kathmandu instead of the usual 14 days as the return journey  from Gorak Shep is significantly reduced by using the helicopter.

The long descent from 5150 metres at Gorak Shep to Lukla 2800 metres is avoided and saves your knees!

COSTS

Though the cost of chartering a helicopter is not fixed and there is considerable leeway for bargaining and getting a good price, the average costs for a charter is given below. Sometimes prices can be below this as well depending if the helicopter has come up to drop passengers and is going back empty.

Gorak Shep to Lukla  - $1500  (3 persons)
Pheriche to Lukla - $1300 ( 4 persons)
Namche to Lukla  $600 (3 persons)
Namche to Kathmandu $3200 (5 persons)
Lukla to Kathmandu  $2800 ( 5 Persons)


HELICOPTER COMPANIES IN NEPAL

Fishtail Air www.fishtailair.com
Summit Air (Helicopters Division) www.summitair,com.np
Simrik Air (Helicopters Division) wwwsimrikair.com
Air Dynasty www.airdynastyheli.com
Mountain Heli www.mountainhelicharter.com
Altitude Air www.altitudeairnepal.com
Shree Air www.shreeairlines.com
Kailsh Heli www.kailashheli.com
Manang Air www.manangair.com.np

Easy Flight Travel headed by Raju Pulami and based in Namche also provides helicopter services at reasonable rates. Do contact  https://www.easyflightnepal.com

South Col Expeditions treks in the Everest region every year. For more information on our treks do visit www.southcol.com

Helicopter Evacuation Insurance | Nepal Trekking | World Nomads

World Nomads (www.worldnomads.com) is one of the companies which provide emergency helicopter evacuation insurance in Nepal for trekkers. Our clients have used this emergency evacuation policy and it has worked every time.

We reproduce below the details from the World Nomads site below:

Travel Insurance: Trekking in Nepal and Helicopter Evacuation

We are constantly asked “if I become sick or injured while trekking in Nepal, is helicopter evacuation covered?” and "How does it all work if I need helicopter evacuation?"

Let’s say first that YES, medical evacuation from the mountains by helicopter is covered by the policy when it is medically necessary!

BUT, you will only be fully covered if you contact our Emergency Assistance Team BEFORE any helicopter evacuation can be arranged.

Why must I contact the Emergency Assistance Team first?
Because the emergency assistance team are the experts who can arrange your helicopter evacuation using a reputable helicopter company and they also guarantee the payment to this company.

BE AWARE!!!!
Wherever possible, contact the emergency assistance team yourself or ask a friend to do it for you. This is because we have had cases where some unscrupulous operators and guides say they’ve received our go-ahead when they haven’t so it’s best if you contact the emergency assistance team yourself.

And even more worrying, helicopter operators inflate flight hours to gain more money and guides of trekking companies gain commission payments as a result of calling for the helicopter evacuation of insured trekkers. All of this results in the insurer paying unnecessary bills, and trekkers often being taken off the mountain when they didn’t need to miss out on the rest of their trek. Who wants to go all the way to Nepal and only trek for a day or two when a little rest and recuperation was all that was needed to keep going?

So ALWAYS contact the Emergency Assistance Team if helicopter evacuation is medically necessary as this way, you are in safe hands and you’ll be covered!

What you're covered for (Standard Policy)
Overseas Medical & Dental Expenses USD $5,000,000
 Hospitalisation or treatment by a doctor or specialist 100% of expenses ­
Prescribed medicines by a doctor or specialist 100% of expenses ­
Pain relieving dental treatment $300 ­
Counselling after an assault or mugging $250 ­
Daily emergency cash allowance in hospital $2,000 ($50 per day) ­
Physiotherapy or chiropractic treatment Not included ­
Treatment by acupuncturist or osteopath Not included ­
Adventure sports and activities
Standard sports & activities ­
Study, work & volunteer
Non­ manual work only
24 hour Emergency Assistance
Emergency Medical Transport, Evacuation, Repatriation & Travel Expenses USD $500,000 
­ Medical evacuation or repatriation home Included ­
 Ambulance transport Included ­
Personal support and accompaniment $5,000 ($250/day) ­
Compassionate emergency repatriation Included ­
Accidental death ­ repatriation of remains $15,000

24 hour Emergency Assistance
Contact the Bupa Global Assistance Team from anywhere in the world (24 hrs, 7 days):
Phone Denmark: +45 70 23 24 61
(Not toll free. Call via an operator reverse charge/collect.)
Text your policy number: +45 42 41 30 00
(Text message only. No phone calls.)
Email: emergency@ihi.com
All itemised phone call/text costs are claimable.

The Everest Icefall Tragedy April 2014

Everest and the Khumbu icefall 

               
An abbreviated version of this article appears in The Hindu Business Line Blink on May 9th 2014 
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/features/blink/cover/the-highs-and-lows/article5989454.ece

" No part of the South Col route was feared more by the climbers than the Icefall... the mass of ice splinters into a jumble of huge tottering blocks called seracs, some as large as office buildings... each trip through the Icefall was like playing  a round of Russian Roulette: sooner or later any given serac was going to fall over without warning" John Krakauer in Into Thin Air

One sunny day in June 1922, George Mallory from the second British Everest expedition was leading a team of climbers and sherpas up to the North Col of Everest.  Around six hundred feet below the Col, the slope suddenly gave way without any warning and within seconds seven expedition sherpas had lost their lives.  None of the British climbers died in the avalanche. The disaster prompted Howard Somervell, an expedition member, to comment “Only Sherpas and Bhotias killed- why oh why could not one of us, Britishers, share their fate?" The expedition leader, Colonel Bruce, paid Rs 250 each as compensation to the families of the sherpas!

On April 18^th 2014, just after dawn, another deadly avalanche swept down the west shoulder of Everest and entombed sixteen sherpas in the Khumbu icefall. The sherpas, part of a team known as “icefall doctors”, were maintaining the route though the deadly Icefall, a job which Outside magazine claimed as being twelve times more dangerous than a U.S. soldier in the Iraq war!  This was the worst disaster on Everest in the history of the mountain. Compared to foreign clients who would possibly pass through the icefall a few times, an expedition sherpa makes around thirty terrifying trips throughout the climbing season.

Emergency Evacuation Insurance for High Altitude Treks in Nepal

A rescue helicopter leaves Namche Bazar  for Kathmandu

On most of my treks in Nepal, I am asked how does one get emergency evacuation insurance covering helicopter evacuation?

This was quite a grey area for me but after some research and with the help of some friends in the USA and UK, I was able to put together this note which would be useful to all trekkers and climbers.

Firstly, let me say that you cannot get this insurance in Nepal or India. No insurance company in these two countries provides this insurance.

The largest world-wide rescue organization in the USA is Global Rescue, which provides rescue services in every country of the world, without elevation restrictions, for injury, natural disasters, and terrorists’ attacks.  International diplomats and business executives use Global Rescue. It is  however expensive for a recreational trekker/ climber.  https://www.globalrescue.com/  

 The second option is to join The America Alpine Club as a member. It  provides limited evacuation insurance benefits, a maximum of $5,000 which  is sufficient for a  helicopter rescue  in Nepal. Their rescue benefit is provided through Global Rescue (described above). You can buy increased rescue insurance through American Alpine Club at a reduced rate. The cost per year is $50 or $75, depending on age or two people can join for  $125.00.  https://americanalpineclub.org/.

 However, please do keep in mind that Global Rescue (through American Alpine Club) is primarily an emergency rescue organization; it is not an insurance company as such. They keep trained rescue personnel on duty 7x24, helicopters, and jets on standby around the world (including India & Nepal), for the sole purpose of evacuating members in an emergency. Their normal coverage would cover Nepal helicopter evacuation, but would not cover flying you back to the U.S. for medical care if the need arose.
 

The Austrian Alpine Club (UK) provides  more extensive evacuation/medical insurance. This organization specializes in rescue insurance for Europe and Asia and they have members from the USA as well. Possibly, their insurance benefits are better than the American Alpine Club. The cost ranges from $45.00 to $65.00 depending on age. http://www.aacuk.org.uk/. The  Austrian Alpine Club (UK) will pay for emergency evacuation in Nepal, medical flight back to the U.S or your home country, and all medical bills related to the injury, up to EURO 25,000 so this could well be the better choice.

For more information please do visit the web sites given above.