Army group abandons Everest bid

The team made their final camp at 7,900m

A group of Army mountaineers have abandoned their attempt to become the first Britons to scale Mount Everest via the treacherous West Ridge.

It comes after they made two final bids for the summit from their 7,900m-high camp. Adverse weather and the threat of avalanches put pay to the attempts.

Expedition leader Warrant Officer Dave Bunting said he was not prepared to risk the lives of the 21 team members.

The expedition was used in an Army promotional campaign on TV and radio.

Only 13 of the more than 2,000 climbers who have successfully conquered Everest have done so via the 2,500 metre-long West Ridge.

The first ascent of the ridge was in 1963 by Americans Willi Unsoeld and Tom Hornbein.

The Army expedition, which was three years in the planning, began in April and took six weeks to establish camps along the route.

In total, 21 men and woman were part of the expedition's main team

WO Bunting of Alderwasley, Derbyshire - a veteran of nine Himalayan expeditions - said on the team's website: "The conditions high up in the Hornbein Couloir are unlikely to change and there is still a very high risk of avalanche.

"Due to the altitude of the couloir, at 8,000m, the conditions are unlikely to change and therefore the high risk of avalanche will remain. To make the couloir safe, we need the area to avalanche or wait for a considerable change in the conditions.

"As climbers, we accept that there is always an element of risk but our Army training, judgment and decision-making mitigate that risk.

"In this case, I am not prepared to risk the lives of the climbers (and my friends) by sending them back up into the Hornbein Couloir which could avalanche at any time."

The other climbers are Civilian Instructor John Doyle; Sergeant Paul Chiddle; Staff Sergeant Guy Homan; Colour Sergeant Frankie Francis; Sergeant Ian Venables; Warrant Officer Dick Gale; Corporal Paul "Brush" McComb and Warrant Officer Shaun Philips.

An Army spokeswoman added: "They did conquer the West Ridge but they were just unable to (reach the) summit."