The wreckage of the Iroquois helicopter which crashed on Anzac Day, killing three airmen, has been airlifted from the crash site.
Defence force staff began the salvage operation this morning after descending by foot into the scrub-filled gully near Pukerua Bay, north of Wellington, the Dominion Post website reported.
The fuselage, rotor blades and other wreckage were airlifted out by a large Helipro helicopter.
The crash site will be reconstructed at Ohakea air base while an air force court of inquiry establishes the cause of the accident.
Flying Officer Daniel Stephen Gregory, 28, Flight Lieutenant Hayden Peter Madsen, 33, and Corporal Benjamin Andrew Carson, 25, were killed when the Iroquois hit a hill in foggy weather on their way to a dawn flypast in Wellington.
The only survivor of the crash, Sergeant Stevin Creeggan, who was seriously injured, is expected to make a full recovery.
NZPA