A barge carrying the wreckage of the helicopter recovered from the sea at Karikari has now berthed at Stone Store wharf in Kerikeri.
The wreckage will be lifted onto a truck by crane this morning, and taken to Auckland Airport where CAA accident investigators will inspect it.
Pilot John de Ridder and Department of Conservation worker William Macrae were killed when their helicopter crashed about 350m off the coast of the Karikari Peninsula late on Wednesday.
The Squirrel ZK-IMB helicopter had been assisting firefighters battling a massive blaze that destroyed at least three homes and sent residents scrambling for shelter.
