A helicopter carrying 16 people has ditched in the North Sea, 25 miles off Aberdeen, police said.

The helicopter, a Bond EC225 Super Puma, is believed to have made a controlled ditching, with no serious injuries.

All 14 passengers plus two crew are safe in a liferaft waiting to be picked up, a spokesman for Bond Air Services which operated the helicopter said.

According to a spokesperson for Bond Offshore, the helicopter's operation company, an oil light pressure warning light came on in helicopter, so the pilot deliberately brought the helicopter down off the Aberdeen coast.

The coastguard were co-ordinating the rescue, assisted by RNLI lifeboats.

The coastguard said three search and rescue helicopters, including one from the coastguard and one from the RAF, were at the scene, along with two lifeboats.

A Maritime and Coastguard Agency spokesman said the helicopter was going from Aberdeen to the Maersk Resilient rig, and then onto the jack up drilling rig ENSCO 102.

He said: "Aberdeen Coastguard was alerted at 12.15pm that a Bond helicopter was on route from Aberdeen to Maersk Resilient, and then onwards to ENSCO 102, when they broadcast an alert that they were forced to ditch the aircraft into the sea."

The spokesman added that all people on board were in a liferaft and rescue units were on the scene.

Aberdeen Royal Infirmary Accident & Emergency department said they were expecting up to 14 admissions for assessment.

They said there was no estimated time of arrival at present.