Fiery chopper crash kills relief workers

GUNUNGSITOLI - Nine Australian military personnel were presumed dead after their helicopter crashed on the Indonesian island of Nias while they were trying to help earthquake survivors.

It was Australia's worst loss on an active service mission since the Vietnam War.

The Australian Defence Department said two other personnel were recovered from the crash site of the Royal Australian Navy Sea King helicopter near a village in the south of Nias and taken back to the Australian naval ship HMAS Kanimbla.

The cause of the crash was not clear.

The helicopter was flying an emergency medical team from the Kanimbla to Nias when it crashed, an AAP journalist reported from the ship.

In Jakarta, Indonesian Air Force spokesman Sagom Tambun said the helicopter had evacuated earthquake victims.

"But before it could reach the ship it fell and burned," he said.

The Kanimbla's mission was part of a A$1 billion aid package provided by Australia after the Boxing Day tsunami.

The UN says 1300 people may have been killed in Gunungsitoli, the main town of Noias, and there is concern the toll could rise when areas cut off by landslides are reached. Deaths have been reported on nearby islands.

- REUTERS