DJI tests delivery, mapping and research drones on Mount Everest
DJI has completed three drone missions on Mount Everest in extreme high-altitude conditions. The operations tested heavy-lift delivery, glacier mapping and atmospheric research on the mountain, known in China as Mount Qomolangma, using the FlyCart 100, Matrice 4E and EV50 eVTOL delivery drone.
On the South Slope in Nepal, DJI tested the FlyCart 100 with local drone company Airlift between Base Camp and Camp 1. The trials measured payload capacity, transmission range, RTK positioning accuracy, signal stability and battery endurance in temperatures from -15°C to 5°C. The drone carried expedition equipment including oxygen tanks, ropes, ladders and other climbing supplies, reaching a test altitude above 6,300 m and lifting up to 47 kg during the flights.
The delivery tests moved 10,073 kg of supplies and waste between Base Camp and Camp 1, including 7,215 kg of climbing supplies and 2,858 kg of waste removed from the mountain. A one-way flight took about eight minutes, compared with the six to eight hours normally required for Sherpas to cross the dangerous Khumbu Icefall on foot. DJI said the FlyCart 100 will continue to support the Nepalese climbing community’s goal of moving about 5,000 oxygen cylinders each climbing season, while return flights could help remove about 10,000 kg of waste from higher camps that were previously difficult to clean.
DJI also tested the Matrice 4E during the spring 2026 climbing season to collect high-resolution glacier data for mountaineering safety. The compact enterprise drone operated at 6,450 m in temperatures below -20°C and mapped more than 3 km² of the core Khumbu Icefall area at centimeter-level detail in 3.5 hours, covering Base Camp, the icefall and areas above Camp 1. Its laser range finder provided real-time distance and terrain measurements, helping teams mark hazards, share coordinates, plan safer routes, monitor risk and support search-and-rescue operations on snow-covered terrain.
On the North Slope in China, DJI used its EV50 eVTOL delivery drone to support atmospheric chemistry research in the ultra-high-altitude troposphere. Over 12 days, the drone transported ozone-measuring equipment from Peking University’s College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering 12 times from a mountaineering base camp in the Qomolangma National Reserve, flying spiral ascents and reciprocal patterns through complex winds; the best flight reached 8,861 m and achieved a continuous climb of 3,730 m. The missions show how heavy-lift drones, mapping platforms and eVTOL aircraft could reduce human exposure on Everest, accelerate waste removal and expand scientific data collection in one of the world’s harshest operating environments.