A 17-year-old girl has been winched to safety after several hours trapped in the wreckage of her ute following a horror crash on a remote country road near Tamworth.

The ute had left the road and crashed down a steep embankment off Barry Rd in Nundle about 9am.

Paramedics arrived to find the vehicle split in two, with its tray further up the hill.

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Inside the mangled cabin was the 17-year-old driver, with suspected spinal injuries.

The delicate rescue operation to free her lasted more than four hours.

Paramedics, firefighters, SES and police initially set up a winch system along the curve of the road, planning to carry the driver up the rough terrain.

But after several hours the Westpac Rescue Helicopter instead hoisted the injured driver from the bottom of the embankment.

The helicopter crew carefully positioned the aircraft near the tree line to raise the patient, accompanied by a paramedic crew member.

She was flown to Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney, in a serious but stable condition.

Barry Rd was closed for most of the day as the rescue unfolded, but has now reopened to traffic.

Police investigations into the cause of the crash are continuing.