How should travellers handle Lukla flights and Everest-region delays?
Lukla is not a normal airport transfer. Weather delays can eat buffer days, so build slack into any Everest-region plan and do not schedule an international flight like the mountains run on your calendar.
Answer
Everest-region logistics need humility. The flight to or from Lukla can be brilliant when it works and maddening when it does not. Weather, airport operations and seasonal routing can affect both ends of the trek, and delays tend to hurt most when the itinerary has no slack. This is why buffer days are not wasted days; they are part of the cost of going to the Khumbu. A tight international departure after the trek is the classic mistake. Plan as if the mountains may keep your schedule for a while, and you will be less likely to spend the final days negotiating with a calendar that never mattered up there.
Recheck before you go
Transport schedules can change. Check current timings before you book around them.