Four feared dead in Barrier Reef crash

Four Australians are feared dead after a plane flying to the Barrier Reef crashed in rugged terrain.

The twin engine Aero Commander disappeared on Tuesday with a pilot and three members of a telecommunications maintenance crew on board during a flight from Cairns to Hicks Island in northern Queensland.

Australian Search and Rescue spokesman Ben Mitchell said the wreckage was spotted by a rescue helicopter about 55 miles from Cairns. A police Special Emergency Response Team was attempting to reach the site, he said.

"The crash was assessed as being non-survivable," Mitchell said.

There is no indication of what might have caused the plane to crash.