Kiwi killed in PNG helicopter crash still to be formally ID'ed

A Bell 206 helicopter belonging to Hevilift went missing in Papua New Guinea. Photo / Supplied

A New Zealander killed in a helicopter crash in Papua New Guinea will be formally identified before his body can be repatriated.

The bodies of Antony Annan, 49, and Australian colleagues Russell Aitken, 42, and Emmett Fynn, 36, have been recovered from the crash site and taken to the capital Port Moresby.

They were found with the wreckage on Friday afternoon, a week after the Hevilift-operated Bell 206 helicopter was reported missing.

Searchers scoured dense forest for five days before debris was found in a stream on Thursday.

A helicopter tailboom was seen from the air on Friday morning, and about six hours later search teams found the rest of the wreckage near the Purari River.

There was low cloud and reduced visibility at the time of the crash and the pilots were flying on sight rather than instruments.

New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade this afternoon confirmed three bodies had been recovered and flown to Port Moresby.

But a ministry spokeswoman said formal identification of the bodies was required before they could be repatriated - a process that could take some days to complete.

"The New Zealand High Commission continues to work with Hevilift, the Australian High Commission and local authorities to provide support and assistance to the family of the New Zealander who was on board the helicopter."

Mr Annan grew up in Alexandra and had been based in Australia with his partner.

He had worked for Hevilift for more than 10 years.

Paul Booij of Hevilift said the company would co-operate with authorities and conduct its own investigation into what caused the crash.

"We can assure everyone that no one wants to know what happened more than we do. We operate in rugged terrain and challenging conditions in Papua New Guinea and we have very strict protocols within our operations.

"We take the safety of our staff very seriously, it is our highest priority. We aim to keep them all safe and to achieve that, we have rigorous maintenance schedules in place for all our aircraft; along with strict operational flight safety programs and protocols," said Mr Booij.

The search for the missing men involved seven helicopters, including those from the Australian and New Zealand Defence Forces.

The search for the missing men involved seven helicopters, including those from the Australian and New Zealand Defence Forces.