MEET THE HEROES WHO RISK THEIR LIVES TO SAVE ADVENTURERS AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD IN EVEREST RESCUE PREMIERES TUESDAY 21 FEBRUARY ON DISCOVERY CHANNEL

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1 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, 18 January 2017 MEET THE HEROES WHO RISK THEIR LIVES TO SAVE ADVENTURERS AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD IN EVEREST RESCUE PREMIERES TUESDAY 21 FEBRUARY ON DISCOVERY CHANNEL When disaster strikes at the top of the world, a rare breed of pilots put their lives on the line to save those facing certain death. Discovery Channel takes you to the frontline of one of the planet s most beautiful and dangerous places, in the brand new series Everest Rescue launching Tuesday 21 February at 8.30pm AEDT. Every year hundreds of climbers and Sherpas attempt to scale Everest. It s dangerous, it s difficult and it s death-defying; for every ten people who reach the summit, one will die trying. At this altitude there s no margin for error and when something goes wrong, there s only one shot at survival. The fate of even the most experienced climbers and Sherpas rests in the hands of the world s most elite band of high altitude pilots. They risk everything to save the lives of those who have risked theirs attempting to reach world s highest peak. The pilots of Everest Rescue are put to the ultimate test each day as they battle against the clock to rescue people who are stranded and often injured or suffering from altitude sickness which can prove fatal. In order to effectively do their job they must also tackle unpredictable and dangerous weather conditions, along with high altitudes that test the limits of their helicopters. The risks are great and the pilots are constantly balancing a desire to save people and bring them back safely with the practicality of avoiding another incident if things go wrong during the rescue. With the season starting to draw to a close, there have been hundreds of calls for help. There is no shortage of emergencies: from the search for twenty stranded climbers whose camp has been blown away and a climber who's fighting for his life in Everest's Death Zone at an altitude out of the helicopter s reach; to a young Nepalese woman from a remote village who is hemorrhaging after giving birth, and a rescue mission hindered by treacherous weather that sees one of the pilots stuck on the mountain - his own safety at risk. This is not only one of the most dangerous jobs on the planet, but the emotional toll it takes on the personal lives of the pilots is unparalleled. In 2015 a devastating earthquake struck Nepal killing thousands of people and a subsequent avalanche took 22 lives on Everest. Some of the pilots were among the first response teams on the mountain. Production of Everest Rescue began exactly one year after the earthquake and the crew witnessed how the rescue teams responded as Everest re-opened to climbers, capturing never-before-seen footage. 1

2 With exclusive and in-depth access, meet the hero pilots and medical units who respond to an overwhelming amount of emergencies on the most dangerous mountain range in the world in Everest Rescue. Preview episodes of Everest Rescue HERE. Images available HERE. Everest Rescue Australian Television Premiere Tuesday 21 February at 8.30pm AEDT Exclusive to Discovery Channel For more information, screeners or talent access, please contact: Rachel Antella Jamie-Lee Burns Publicity Manager Publicity Executive About Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, a division of the number-one pay-tv programmer Discovery Communications, is dedicated to satisfying curiosity, engaging and entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its portfolio of 14 brands. From survival to natural history, wonders of science to extreme jobs, motoring to travel and lifestyle, and the latest engineering marvels to live sporting events, each channel offers distinct must-watch programming to engage viewers across the region. The network s 14 brands reach 674 million cumulative subscribers in 36 countries and territories with programming customised in 14 languages and dialects. For more information, please visit About Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, the flagship network of Discovery Communications, is devoted to creating the highest quality pay-tv programming in the world and remains one of the most dynamic networks on television. First launched in 1985, Discovery Channel reaches 209 million subscribers in Asia Pacific. It offers viewers an engaging line-up of high-quality non-fiction entertainment from blue-chip nature, science and technology, ancient and contemporary history, adventure, cultural and topical documentaries. 2

3 EVEREST RESCUE EPISODE GUIDE Episode 1 The Death Zone Tuesday 21 February at 8.30pm AEDT Pilot Jason Laing is called to rescue a group of twenty climbers whose camp has been blown away by high winds. It s vital to get to them as soon as possible as the Himalayan weather can change within seconds; at 20,000 feet, temperatures can drop below -20 degrees Celsius. With no coordinates for the climbers and low cloud, falling light and limited fuel, it s like looking for a needle in a haystack. Ryan Skorecki is one of the newest pilots to Everest and he is called upon to save a climber who has altitude sickness. As Ryan isn t yet acclimatised, he has a limited supply of oxygen and must complete the rescue quickly or risks his own life as well as the climber s. Siddartha Gurung and Ananda Andy Thapa have the important task of delivering an electricity transformer to a Nepali village that has no power. However, when they arrive, they find that an 18-year-old girl has just given birth and is hemorrhaging. Both mother and baby need urgent medical attention, but they are five days walk from the nearest hospital so the pilots take them by helicopter to Kathmandu. Episode 2 Top of the World Tuesday 28 February at 8.30pm AEDT Rookie Everest Pilot Ryan gets a distress call from nine climbers, stranded in a remote corner of the mighty Himalayas. With their exact location unknown and daylight fading, Ryan faces a huge challenge as he searches the unfamiliar landscape. In Lukla, veteran rescue pilot Jason is called to save a climber who's fighting for his life in Everest's Death Zone but the extreme altitude means he's just out of the helicopter's reach. Jason advises the team on the mountain to try to bring the climber lower while he preps the helicopter to fly to the world s highest landing spot. And Everest s newest Pilot Lorenz Nufer flies higher than ever before to complete a unique mission at 16,000 feet. Episode 3 Flying Blind Tuesday 7 March at 8.30pm AEDT The pilots are facing new dangers, as the monsoon approaches with its extreme and unpredictable weather. In one of the worst days of his entire career as a pilot, Ryan battles the elements while racing to return to Lukla with sick climbers, then faces a potentially deadly disaster at 21,000 feet. Jason gets an urgent rescue request from Camp 1 - fighting poor visibility and constantly changing cloud, he has to call on all of his experience to try and reach a seriously sick climber. And pilot Andy is plunged into a deadly blackout while flying to rescue a man with a life threatening head-injury. Episode 4 Summit Fever Tuesday 14 March at 8.30pm AEDT The pilots are stretched to breaking point, as exhausted climbers summit the highest mountain on Earth. News of Everest success and tragedy spreads through the mountains and Ryan's pushed to his limit when an uninvited climber tries to hitch a lift at 17,500 feet. Jason faces his highest ever rescue to save a dying climber. Lorenz learns some grim realities of flying in the Himalayas and discovers how the wrong decision at extreme altitude can cost you your life. Episode 5 Life on the Line Tuesday 21 March at 8.30pm AEDT As climbers battle to reach Everest's summit, Pilot Surendra Paudel tries to rescue a climber who developed severe frostbite on the roof of the world. Racing the clock against high winds, Pilots Siddartha and Jason attempt an historic mission to prevent deaths of Sherpas and climbers in the treacherous Ice Fall - dubbed the most dangerous mile on earth. Violent gusts create problems for Ryan, as he tries to rescue a climber from Everest Base Camp, while Lorenz is also under huge time pressure, with just minutes to save the life of a local man with a severe head injury. Episode 6 Do or Die Tuesday 28 March at 8.30pm AEDT In the final days of the climbing season, Ryan's rescue mission hits trouble. With volunteer doctor Alex Kumar on board, he struggles to locate a woman suffering severe abdominal pains. Pushing the helicopter to its maximum altitude, Jason finds himself struggling to reach a climber who has collapsed in the Death Zone, while Lorenz races against the setting sun to get a critically ill man back to hospital in Kathmandu before nightfall. 3

4 THE PILOTS OF EVEREST RESCUE Name: Jason Laing Age: 48 Country of Origin: New Zealand Jason was awarded Helicopter Association International s Pilot of The Year 2016 for his rescue and recovery efforts following the 2014 Nepalese icefalls as well as the tragic 2015 Nepalese earthquake. Jason does not regard himself as a hero and says he was just doing his job. Raised in the South Island of New Zealand, Jason left school at age 14. Since learning to fly in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, Jason s skills as a pilot have taken him to Australia, Northern India (Kashmir), Nepal and Antarctica. Jason has also crewed racing yachts in the Caribbean. His other accolades include the Nepal Mountaineering Association s Kumar Khahga Bickram Adventurous Award and the FAI award for Outstanding Airmanship. Jason lives in Queenstown, New Zealand, with his fiancée Robyn and their one-year-old daughter Tara. Name: Ryan Skorecki Job title: Pilot Age: 42 Country of Origin: USA This is Ryan s first season working on Everest and in doing so, he s fulfilling a lifelong dream. Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, he spent eight years in Colorado, before moving to Alaska where he has lived for the past 16 years. Prior to his Everest job he flew for the US scientific mission in Antarctica and worked in Alaska for the heli-ski season followed by the firefighting season. Now he works on rotation - Antarctica followed by Nepal. Ryan started flying helicopters in 2004 and has racked up more than 6000 flying hours. Name: Surendra Paudel Age: 35 Surendra was a pilot for the Nepalese Army for more than eight years and he joined the Simrik Air in He is Siddartha s second in command, qualified in long line human cargo sling missions, and has saved the lives of many local people and tourists throughout the Himalayas. 4

5 Name: Lorenz Nufer Job title: Pilot Age: 42 Country of Origin: Switzerland This is Lorenz s first season in Nepal. He has been a pilot for 16 years and has undertaken more than 2,000 flying hours. From a young age, he always wanted to be a pilot. He is married with two young children and his family stayed in Switzerland while he worked in Nepal for the climbing season. Lorenz works as a pilot and flight instructor in Switzerland and is an examiner for the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation. He is passionate about his job, and flying in the Himalayas was something he has wanted to do for many years. He also has a background in psychology and works as a business consultant and coach in organisational development and leadership. Name: Captain Siddartha Gurung Job title: MD of Simrik Air (Chief Pilot & Director of Operations at time of filming) Age: 41 Chief Pilot Siddartha has 18 years experience flying in the mountainous terrain of Nepal and knows the Himalayas like no other. Considered one of Nepal s most experienced pilots, he was previously in the Nepalese army and got his first helicopter licence at the age of 18. He is married with three children. In 2012 Siddartha s best friend and accomplished pilot, Sabin Basnet, was tragically killed in a rescue attempt on the Himalayan peak Ama Dablam. Both Sabin and his engineer Puma s deaths could have been avoided and Siddartha has worked tirelessly to improve the training and conditions of pilots and their rescue specialists since. Name: Ananda Andy Thapa Age: 30 Ananda Andy Thapa joined the Nepalese army when he was 18 years old and served as a major, flying helicopters for eight years. He grew up in a remote farming community and dreamed of flying helicopters, working hard at school to get a place as an army cadet. Andy has been a commercial pilot with Simrik Air since 2012 and recently qualified as a long line pilot for cargo operations. 5