‘Exciting and ambitious in equal measure, Mission: Everest will set a new standard for what is physically possible on Everest. Their light footprint (in terms of actual time spent in the mountain's ecosystem) will help pave a more sustainable way ahead for high-altitude mountaineering.’
- Sir David Hempleman-Adams KCVO OBE KStJ
OUR MISSION
Transcending a traditional Mount Everest expedition
In May 2025, a team of four military veterans will journey from London to the summit of Mount Everest and back in a record 7 days, a feat that typically takes 8-10 weeks, redefining what is possible in high-altitude mountaineering.
The Goal:
1. Summit Mount Everest and return in 7 days.
2. Raise £1 million to support Veterans and Armed Forces charities, £200k of which is being raised directly to support bereaved military children.
3. Raise awareness for veterans' wellbeing.
CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY
Mission: Everest will leverage the latest technology to minimise its footprint on the mountain, mitigate risk and redefine what is possible in the world of high altitude mountaineering.
ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE
Mission: Everest recognises the Himalayas of Nepal as one of the world’s most fragile ecosystems. Our light touch expedition will set a new standard in sustainable mountain adventures.
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
Mission: Everest takes social responsibility seriously. The expedition will model best practice in social responsibility in order to protect and enhance the livelihoods of the local sherpas and their communities.
THE TEAM
Learn more about the team participating in Mission Everest.
Expedition Leader
MAJOR GARTH MILLER
A seasoned high-altitude mountaineer with extensive experience on Everest, K2 and other 8000m peaks. Garth previously set the record for the fastest London ascent of Everest, completing the remarkable adventure in just 21 days. After officer training at the prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Garth joined the Royal Gurkha Rifles. A veteran of three operational tours in Afghanistan, he now combines service as an army reservist with his career as a Captain with British Airways flying to long-haul destinations all over the world. He holds a Master’s degree from the University of Cambridge and away from climbing he has completed 10 ironman triathlons and the infamous Marathon des Sables. Garth is in demand as an expert in his field and speaker on leadership, risk management and resilience.
COLONEL ALISTAIR CARNS DSO OBE MC MP
Al Carns joined the Royal Marines at 19 and went on to have a distinguished 24-year military career. He has led five tours in Afghanistan and led at every rank in almost every major conflict of the last two decades. Carns is the most decorated MP since the Second World War and his distinguished service has been recognised with a Mention in Dispatches, the Military Cross (MC), an OBE in the 2022 Queen’s Birthday Honours. In the 2024 New Year’s Honours he was appointed as a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), in recognition of ‘gallant and distinguished services in the field’ between October 2023 and March 2024.
Carns is currently the Minister for Veterans and People at the UK Ministry of Defence, and has re-enlisted as a Royal Marine reservist since he became an MP. He hopes this expedition will raise increasing awareness for all those that are serving, have served and their families. He is also a Royal Marine Mountain Leader and is a trained cold weather and Arctic warfare specialist. He is looking forward to the challenge of his first experience into the ‘Death Zone’ above 8000m.
ANTHONY ‘STAZ’ STAZICKER CGC
With an impressive 13 years of decorated military service, ten within the Special Forces and his last three years as a highly experienced chief sniper instructor and demolitions expert, ‘Staz’ is a distinguished Special Forces Operator who was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for Combat Actions conducted in Afghanistan in 2013. Staz moved away from the military and co-founded the multi-million-pound performance outerwear brand, ThruDark. Accolades have come aplenty in the six short years since ThruDark’s inception including being listed in The Times top 100 fastest growing privately owned business in 2024.
Staz is an accomplished climber having previously summited Ama Dablam in the Himalayas, he is an author of a book “The Hard Road Will Take You Home” and he has starred on the hit show for Channel 4 ‘SAS: Who Dares Wins’ as one of the Directing Staff.
KEVIN GODLINGTON
Kevin is a former Boy Soldier, joining the Royal Engineers at 16 and later UK Special Forces. He has served all over the world. He was a special adviser to the Government and No.10 on youth crime, drawing from his own experience of spending time in state care as a child. Kevin has been active in the veteran space for two decades and is a long-term supporter and friend of the charities Scotty’s Little Soldiers, Combat Stress, and one of the founding members of the charity Tickets for Troops. His extensive mountaineering experience includes climbing over 20 of the world’s 6,000 and 7,000-metre peaks, spanning 12 expeditions. Kevin’s other passions are flying helicopters and para-motoring, and ultra endurance events.
100% of your donations will go directly to our charity partners making an immediate impact where it is needed most.
SUMMIT SUIT PREVIEW COMING SOON
The team will all be wearing the latest generation of our iconic Summit Suit design. ThruDark Summit Suits have been worn for record breaking ascents and summit attempts all over the Himalayas. Packed with substantial down fill for maximum insulation, the Summit Suit is the pinnacle of ThruDark design, test and development.
SPONSORS
MISSION EVEREST FAQ's
We believe that going fast is safer, kinder to the environment, and increases the likeliness of summit success compared to traditional 8-9 week long Everest expeditions.
- By pre-acclimatising in the safety of our own homes we reduce our exposure to illness and injury normally associated with spending weeks or even months in Base Camp. We will arrive ready for our summit push in peak physical condition.
- By arriving at the foot of the mountain ‘ready to go’ we reduce the risks associated with climbing through the infamous Khumbu Icefall. Each year climbers are killed in this dangerous section of the mountain. Traditionally, climbers will climb through the icefall 8 times. Our approach will see us exposed to the icefall just twice – once on ascent, and again on the descent.
- We have seen many climbers have their summit hopes dashed due to the length of traditional expeditions. Exhaustion, injury, issues at home or at work requiring their attention, and illness associated with spending months living in the close confines of a crowded base camp are regular occurrences. Reducing the time we are away from our ‘normal’ lives makes manging these issues easier.
- By spending just 5 days on the mountain our footprint is significantly reduced. Compared to traditional months long expeditions we will produce significantly less waste.
- Our minimal mountain footprint means less infrastructure on the mountain, reducing the amount of food, supplies and equipment required. This is kinder to the environment and reduces the risk for our sherpa team.
Our mantra is ‘no waste, no trace’. Mission Everest is a climate neutral expedition. We will use solar power in lieu of generators, recycle our wastewater, carry out more than we carry in, and tread lightly in the fragile Himalayan eco-system. Our infrastructure on the mountain will be minimal – we won’t even spend a night in Base Camp!
One of our key differentiators is how we treat our Nepali sherpa team and support staff. In recognition of their hard work and the risks they take, our local ‘on mountain’ support will be the best paid team on the mountain. They will have the same equipment, medical cover and evacuation insurance as foreign guides. We believe that this is the standard all expedition teams should replicate. Mission Everest will be making a donation to the Khumbu Climbing Centre – an incredible sherpa community-lead initiative training local mountain workers in all aspects of mountain safety, equipping them with the necessary skills to safely operate on Everest and supporting their families whilst they are on the mountain.
We are a team of very experienced climbers. We have enlisted the support of leading physical trainers and doctors to ensure that our physical and physiological preparation is the best it can be. We are using the very latest knowledge of ‘hypoxic training’ to aid our acclimatisation and reduce our susceptibility to altitude-related illness, and we are conducting mountain skills refresher training in advance of our arrival in Nepal.
It is normally only possible to summit Everest in the short ‘weather window’ which precedes the arrival of the monsoon. This weather window typically lasts about a week in the second half of May each year. In some years this period may only provide a few days of safe summit weather – in some years when operators have not coordinated their summit pushes this has led to queuing at certain bottlenecks on Everest. Whilst these queues are uncommon, we have contingency plans to ensure we avoid them if they do occur.
The Mission Everest team is made up of serving and former serving forces personnel. We want to bring attention to veterans’ welfare and funds raised will go towards armed forces and veterans’ charities, including organisations which support the bereaved military children of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedoms. This is something we are passionate about.
As part of our preparation we are ‘pre-acclimatising’ at home in the UK. We will be sleeping in specially adapted tents which simulate increasing altitude in the months leading up to our climb. We will be doing regular hypoxic training sessions, again using a hypoxic generator to simulate high altitude. This creates a number of physiological adaptations which prepare our bodies for the demands of the climb. This means that we are able to safely go directly to Base Camp, dramatically reducing the length of a typical Everest expedition.
Experience, the best logistical support on the mountain, cutting edge oxygen technology, the right clothing and equipment, and meticulous planning and preparation. We are also trialling an innovative medical treatment that we believe will significantly reduce our susceptibility to altitude-related illness, in effect protecting us as we climb. This means that we can climb higher faster.
Firstly, we are setting new standards for environmentally conscious and socially responsible climbing. Secondly, we are participating in a trial of a unique medical treatment that we believe will protect us from the most serious altitude-related illnesses. This involves a short exposure to a mixture of oxygen and xenon – both of which of course are naturally occurring in our atmosphere – in advance of our climb under medical supervision. By reducing the risk of developing HACE (high altitude cerebral oedema) we are free to climb higher faster. We look forward to proving this technology.
We liken our approach to a classic Special Forces operation – meticulous preparation and planning coupled with bold execution against overwhelming odds. We think Mission Everest signposts a new way forward in how mountaineers might approach climbing the highest mountains in the world. We have spent more than enough months sitting in base camps all over the world and consider what we are doing to be progress. You don’t have to suffer to show respect for the mountain. By dramatically reducing the time we spend on the expedition we are not only reducing the impact on the environment, we are also reducing the impact on our families and our professional careers.
One of the unique things about high altitude mountaineering is the number of different styles climbers are at liberty to adopt – traditional ‘siege’ style expeditions, alpine ascents, solo climbs, and for a very select few even ‘No O2’ attempts. What we are doing is another option that will be available in future to experienced high altitude mountaineers who are prepared to put in the necessary work.
