South African sailors rescued off WA coast

Three South African sailors have been winched to safety in the remote Indian Ocean after their mast broke on the way to New Zealand.

Three South African men have been rescued from a stricken yacht in the Indian Ocean. (AAP)

Three South African men have been rescued from a stricken yacht in the Indian Ocean, 1300km off the Australian mainland's most south westerly point.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) says the men had been sailing from South Africa to New Zealand, before their distress signal was detected in Canberra about 7pm (AEDT) on Thursday.

A Perth-based rescue jet flew to the dismasted 13-metre vessel, Jedi 1, and established a radio connection around midnight, AMSA said in a statement.

It took HMAS Parramatta, which was deployed given the yacht's remote location, more than 40 hours to reach the men.

AMSA said the sailors were winched to safety in good health by a Seahawk helicopter after the HMAS Parramatta arrived about 9pm on Saturday.