An Air Force helicopter took off early yesterday carrying elite paramilitary mountaineers to conduct what officials described as a “very high-risk” operation at more than 5,000 meters (16,400 feet). They were trying to retrieve the bodies of four Britons, two Americans, one Indian and one Australian believed to have been killed in an avalanche last week on Nanda Devi, India’s second-highest mountain.
On Monday helicopters spotted from the air what officials believe to be five bodies and their scattered mountaineering gear.
The remains of the other three climbers were thought to be nearby.
But yesterday, the helicopter had to return to base after making three failed attempts to hover over the spot and airdrop the soldiers from the Indo Tibetan Border Police paramilitary mountain force.
The aircraft was hindered by turbulent winds, the risk of further avalanches, the bowl-shaped terrain, the high altitude, and the fact that there was only one possible approach route to the site.
“When a chopper enters into such places, they have to also consider a return path, which was unavailable in this case, so the pilots decided not to take any risk,” local district magistrate Vijay Kumar Jogdande told reporters.
The officer said they would launch another aerial operation and also attempt to send a ground mission to reach the spot, something that would take a week to prepare and acclimatise for.
Fresh snowfall may also hamper the recovery.
The originally 12-strong team — four Britons were rescued after separating from the main group — was led by experienced British climber Martin Moran and had permission to climb the eastern peak of Nanda Devi.
But a Facebook post by Moran’s mountaineering firm on May 22 said that they planned to attempt “an unclimbed peak” around 21,300 feet high.
“This mountain range is more difficult to scale than Mount Everest. They knowingly risked their lives after changing their plans without informing the authorities,” an official involved in the operation said on Tuesday on condition of anonymity.
“The permission was granted for Nanda Devi east, and any diversion is illegal. We were completely unaware of their changed plan and that turned fatal,” he said.
The two groups last communicated with each other on May 26, a day before heavy snow fell and massive avalanches hit the heights.
When the eight climbers failed to report back to the base camp, the other four launched a search before alerting Indian authorities, who started a major operation.