The Hamilton-based Westpac Rescue Helicopter was dispatched to a motorbike crash on State Highway 1 in Rangiriri on Sunday morning.
Two people, a man and woman, crashed their motorbike into a barricade, suffering multiple fractures and other injuries.
They were flown to Waikato Hospital in serious condition.
Traffic was blocked in both directions to allow the rescue helicopter to land and retrieve the patients.
Part of SH 1 near Huntly has now been reopened.
