His experiences with fellow climber Heinrich Harrer during World War II were depicted in the 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet.

In his early years he began climbing in his beloved Kaiser mountain range; later, in Munich, Aufschnaiter became acquainted with several German alpinists of the time.

After several attempts at the Nanga Parbat, Aufschnaiter led a small four-man expedition in 1939, including Heinrich Harrer, to the Diamir Face with the aim of finding an easier route to the peak.

Two days later, war was declared and on 3 September 1939, all were put behind barbed wire to be transferred to a detention camp at Ahmednagar near Bombay two weeks later.

While Magener and von Have took the train to Calcutta and from there found their way to the Japanese army in Burma,[2][3] the others headed for the closest border.

After Sattler had given up on 10 May, the remaining four entered Tibet crossing the Tsang Chok-la Pass (5,896 metres) on 17 May 1944 and thereafter split into two pairs: Harrer and Kopp; Aufschnaiter and Treipel.

Aufschnaiter and Harrer, helped by the former's knowledge of the Tibetan language, proceeded to the capital of Lhasa which they reached on 15 January 1946, having crossed Western Tibet (passing the sacred Mount Kailash), the South-West with Gyirong County and the Northern Changthang Plateau.

Employed by the government he helped plan a hydroelectric power plant and a sewage system for Lhasa and started first attempts at river regulations and reforestation in the area.

In October 1950 the advance of the Chinese People's Liberation Army to Lhasa forced Aufschnaiter and Harrer to join the caravan of the Dalai Lama when he retreated to the Chumbi Valley bordering Sikkim and India.

He eventually obtained a Nepalese passport which allowed him access to many restricted remote areas and he discovered valuable early Buddhist wall paintings.