Just sounds like a lot of sour grapes to me from a bunch of French haters. What have HAI got to say about it? For me, that's the test of whether a record was set or not. Whatever is the case, is it still the highest landing made by a helicopter?
As for all the brouhaha about how it's such a sacred place, if that's the case why do the controlling authorities allow all the commercial climbs with their polluting rubbish up there - I would think they do far more damage than a helicopter briefly touching its skids on the summit.
I hope it's proven that it did land on the summit as the B3 is a great altitude machine and I haven't heard the Chinese making a lot of fuss about it as one or two Nepalese seem to be doing - and Nepal has a great reputation as one of the premiere aviation nations doesn't it
