Helicopter to be winched from swamp

A helicopter pilot and his passenger are being winched out of thick mangrove swamp on the Firth of Thames in the Waikato, after crash landing.

The helicopter went down at around 9.30am near the township of Waitakaruru.

The pilot and a passenger suffered minor injuries.

"The first we heard about it was a report from a fisherman 1km from the shore who watched a helicopter come down. He heard a bang and didn't see it come back up again," Fire Service northern communications centre shift manager Jaron Phillips told NZPA.

"The pilot has since contacted emergency services. He said himself and a female passenger were on the aircraft and that they are okay. They have cuts and bruises."

A police helicopter has been sent to winch the pair out of the mangroves.

- NEWSTALK ZB, NZPA