Jamie Ogden's family has spoken of their heartbreak at losing their son and brother in Friday night's chopper crash near Anna Bay.
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Mr Ogden and Grant Kuhnemann, both from Queensland, Jocelyn Villanueva and Gregory Miller, a married couple from Sydney and the chopper's pilot and owner David Kerr from Queensland are all believed to have perished.
Police notified Graham Ogden and his wife, who live in Maryborough, of the tragedy on Saturday morning.
The couple travelled to Brisbane where Mr Ogden's disabled wife remained while he travelled to Port Stephens.
"It's pretty hard but it must be harder on the grandchildren, Jamie's daughter and son," Mr Ogden told reporters on Sunday.
He thanked the rescue teams that were searching for the 1960s era Bell UH1 helicopter wreck in heavy seas.
"Everything that is possible is being done as far as the police and rescue. It makes you feel a bit better," he said.
It is believed that Mr Ogden, Mr Kuhnemann and Mr Kerr were long-time friends who were planning a weekend away together.
Darren Ogden, who also travelled to Newcastle, said his brother had been talking about the trip for weeks.
He said the family hoped Mr Ogden's body could be retrieved and returned to them.
The helicopter had been flying between Coffs Harbour and Bankstown in Sydney on Friday evening.
It refuelled in Coffs Harbour about 90 minutes before Mr Kerr, described as a "very experienced aviator" contacted Newcastle Airport tower and sought permission to fly higher in treacherous conditions.
A severe weather warning had been issued in the area with peak winds in excess of 125km/h.
Air traffic control indicated the aircraft was rapidly losing altitude when contact was lost at 6.49pm. There were no emergency beacons signals or mayday calls detected.
The Australian Defence Force confirmed on Sunday that Gregory Miller was an employee but he was not on duty at the time of the crash.
Police have appealed to anyone who may have seen the helicopter before it crashed to come forward.
"Police are interested in talking to anyone who may have been in the Anna Bay/Fishermans Beach area between 5pm and 7pm on Friday or may have filmed the helicopter or taken images of it," a police statement said.
The search is being coordinated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority with support from the NSW Police Marine Area Command, Port Stephens-Hunter Police District and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.
Wreckage from helicopter was spotted on Saturday, with the tail rotor found by water police about 8.45am. The Westpac Rescue Helicopter spotted the main airframe less than an hour later, roughly eight kilometres south of Fingal Bay.
The wreckage sunk before it could be retrieved.
"The location of the airframe is consistent with the drift model of where the aircraft was believed to have entered the water," an Australian Maritime Safety Authority statement said.
The search and rescue effort was suspended on Saturday afternoon. The NSW Police offshore patrol vessel Nemesis and PolAir were patrolling the area again Sunday.
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