The body of a New Zealand helicopter pilot killed in a midair collision in New York arrived in Auckland this morning.
Jeremy Clarke, 33, was one of nine people killed when the helicopter he was flying collided with a small plane over the Hudson River earlier this month.
A contingent of 20 family members, including his fiance Danielle Granahan, arrived in New Zealand with Mr Clarke's body this morning, while investigations continue into how the crash happened.
Mr Clarke's funeral will be held at Schnapper Rock Cemetery, Albany, on Saturday afternoon.
He and Ms Granahan had planned to get married next year.
He had lived in the United States since 2000 and recently became a citizen, the Associated Press reported.
The couple planned to move to Arizona and Mr Clarke recently went househunting in Phoenix.
Mr Clarke had worked for New York helicopter company Liberty Tours for 18 months, and previously worked as a pilot and instructor for Los Angeles Helicopters from 2005 to 2007.
The others killed in the collision were a family from Pennsylvania in the small plane and five Italian tourists in the helicopter.
