Two men aboard a plane that crashed off the coast of Stewart Island on Tuesday afternoon walked away from the scene without injury.
The four-seater Cherokee plane failed to take off from Doughboy Bay beach on the western side of the island and crashed into the sea just before 3pm.
Senior Constable Dale Jenkins says the plane's emergency beacon was activated and police flew to the scene immediately.
The remains of the plane were pulled from the scene, about 50 meters from the shore, by helicopter.
Investigations are underway to determine why the plane crashed.
