- DJI announces the completion of three drone missions on Everest
- FlyCart 100 transports supplies one way and trash the other
- DJI Matrice 4E and DJI EV50 involved in other tasks on the mountain
Mount Everest has a litter problem. Decades of expeditions have left the world’s highest mountain strewn with discarded oxygen tanks, abandoned tents, food packaging and worse—so much of it that the peak has earned the unflattering nickname “the world’s highest garbage dump.” But DJI believes its drones can help clean up the mess.
The drone giant has announced the successful completion of three missions on Everest, headlined by the DJI FlyCart 100. DJI’s heavy-lift delivery drone has spent the spring 2026 climbing season shuttling supplies and waste between Base Camp and Camp 1 on the mountain’s Nepalese south side.
Working with local drone company Airlift, DJI says the FlyCart 100 has hauled a total of 10,073kg between the two camps: 7,215kg of climbing supplies (think oxygen tanks, ropes and ladders) on the way up; 2,858 kg of waste on its way down again. In the future, the drone will help remove approximately 10,000 kg of waste per year. season from higher camps, which previously could not be cleared at all.
That’s a serious amount of junk being moved, but it’s badly needed. According to National Geographic, the average Everest climber generates about 8 kg of waste during their expedition, most of which is left on the mountain. And with over 600 people attempting the summit each season – each supported by at least one local guide or porter – the trash piles up quickly.
Eight minutes against eight hours
The FlyCart 100’s benefits aren’t limited to its payload – the time (and risk) it saves is also a big plus. Traditionally, ferrying supplies from Base Camp to Camp 1 means Sherpas trek for six to eight hours on foot through the Khumbu Icefall, a treacherous maze of shifting ice towers and crevasses that are among the most dangerous parts of the entire climb. The FlyCart 100 can cover the same route in just eight minutes.
This is not to say that the drone has an easy ride. The FlyCart 100 can carry up to 100kg at sea level, but Everest is as far from sea level as our planet’s surface gets. In DJI’s tests, the drone lifted up to 47kg while operating at altitudes of over 6,300m, in temperatures ranging from -15°C to 5°C – conditions that would ground most consumer drones (and most helicopters, for that matter).
“Our team remains dedicated to making the world’s highest mountain safer and cleaner for Sherpas and climbers around the world,” said DJI spokesperson Christina Zhang. “The success of our latest operations marks a proud milestone, and we hope our ongoing collaboration with the scientific community will further advance drone technology – saving lives and supporting conservation efforts around the globe.”
The cleanup effort is closely aligned with Nepal’s broader efforts to restore the mountain, including the Nepal Mountain Association’s “Zero Waste Initiative 2027.” The FlyCart 100 will also support the Nepalese climbing community’s goal of transporting around 5,000 oxygen cylinders between Base Camp and Camp 1 each season.
Mavic 3 vs the mountain
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DJI has some history on Everest. In 2022, a DJI Mavic 3 became the first drone to capture footage from the mountain’s 8,848.86m summit, while in 2024 the FlyCart 30 conducted the world’s first drone delivery test on the mountain.
This year’s missions went even further: alongside the FlyCart 100’s headline-grabbing delivery runs, a DJI Matrice 4E mapped over 3 km² of the Khumbu Icefall in centimeter-level detail in just 3.5 hours, giving climbing teams real-time hazard data to plan safer routes. Meanwhile, on the mountain’s north side, DJI’s first eVTOL delivery drone, the EV50, carried ozone measurement equipment for atmospheric research and reached a maximum height of 8,861m – higher than the summit itself.
None of this will solve Everest’s overcrowding problem, and there are still literally tons of historical debris buried in its glaciers, with climate change exposing more of it every year. But if a drone can accomplish in eight minutes what once took a sherpa a full day of life-threatening work, it looks like real progress is being made.
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