Two people have died in a helicopter crash in the Paekākāriki Hill area near Wellington.

Emergency services began searching the rugged area after receiving an automated crash alert at 7.30am today.

Police Inspector Renée Perkins confirmed in a statement that both the pilot and the sole passenger were found dead following the crash.

“Work is ongoing to recover the deceased and to examine the crash scene, which will be done in conjunction with investigators from the Civil Aviation Authority,” Perkins said.

“Our thoughts are with their families at this time.”

According to a person working near the scene of the crash, the chopper was unrecognisable.

The witness told RNZ they checked the vital signs of one of two people on the helicopter, but they were dead.

The man said the helicopter, which he understood was involved in goat culling, was leaking fuel after the crash, but he was unable turn the machine off before deciding to move away due to the risk.

MP for Ōtaki and ex-Air Force helicopter pilot Tim Costley told the Herald crashes like these are “always deeply concerning”.

He said he was “just hoping for the best possible outcome, there’s a whole spectrum of what it can be.”

His experience as a pilot meant that once he found out about the crash, it sent his mind wandering.

“You look out at the window at what the weather conditions are and then you think ‘well, what could have caused this?

“You try and unpack what might have happened and how bad or positive it might be.”

Costley recalled losing three colleagues in a 2010 Air Force helicopter crash near Paekākāriki Hill Rd, close to the same area as the crash from this morning.

“Naturally your mind wanders back to that ... the heartbreak of losing friends,” he said.

Having been a rescue pilot, Costley said he knew first-hand the importance of “giving people space to respond” and not speculating too much about the details."

Emergency services have set up a base of operations at Battle Hill Farm Forest Park. Police have set up a cordon at the entrance to the popular camping area.

Maritime NZ said two rescue helicopters and police were in the area and support from Fire and Emergency was being organised.

Rescue choppers are searching in the Paekākāriki Hill area for the downed craft. Image / Flight Radar

A Fire and Emergency shift manager told NZME they had two crews in the area from Porirua and had sent out their “line rescue team”.

“You might also know it as rope rescue,” he said.

Line rescue teams are trained in high-angle, vertical, or challenging terrain, often handling rescues at height or in confined spaces.

Spokespeople for both Kāpiti and Wellington airports said the flight was not associated with them.

A spokeswoman for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said they were aware of the crash in the Akatarawa Forest area.

Police have set up a cordon at the entrance to Battle Hill Farm Forest Park amid the search for a crashed helicopter in the Paekākāriki Hill area. Photo / Ethan Manera

“At this stage, the CAA will make initial enquiries to understand what occurred and why, and to determine whether any further action is required.”

The area has previously had other helicopter crashes, including the fatal one in nearby Pukerua Bay in 2010 that Costley referred to.

The NZ Defence Force pleaded guilty in 2014 for the deadly incident, with a court hearing Air Force commanders allowed a dangerous and deadly culture of rule-breaking to exist in an environment which had few warning systems, ultimately resulting in the unnecessary deaths of three young airmen.

In 2017 another chopper came down in the Pauatahanui inlet, with pilot Rick Lucas managing to escape the sinking aircraft.

The BK117 A-3 helicopter was being used to transport three 11-metre hardwood power poles when Lucas lost control and plunged into the water below.

An investigation showed a phenomenon known as “unanticipated yaw” was probably responsible for the crash.

Unanticipated yaw is when the body of the helicopter begins to move in the opposite direction to the rotors. It can be fixed if the pilot notices it and acts quickly.