Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Kieran Walshe has refused to be drawn on media reports that a top-secret spy plane was used in the hunt for missing State Government minister Tim Holding.

Yesterday Premier John Brumby said he had expected Mr Holding to be found alive on Mt Feathertop because his torchlight and body heat had been spotted on the mountain on Monday night.

The lost bushwalker was eventually located by helicopter crews at around 10:00am on Tuesday.

Reports today say the Monday night sighting was made by a mystery plane equipped with either infra-red or thermal imaging equipment.

Deputy Commissioner Walshe acknowledged that 'an offer' had been made for assistance to find Mr Holding, but he would not elaborate.

"I don't want to make any comment. I made it very clear yesterday that an opportunity came to me which I accepted, and that activity resulted in us being able to clearly identify the area where Mr Holding was.

"I don't want to say any more about that."

Deputy Commissioner Walshe denied that Mr Holding, who is expected to be released from a Melbourne hospital today, was treated any differently to other hikers who have been lost in the Victorian Alps.

He told the ABC's 774 Morning Show with Jon Faine that Mr Holding was not favoured because he is a politician.

"We used the same sort of opportunities, the same resource availability that would have been used, it doesn't matter who it would have been," he said.

"If we had any individual who was lost anywhere in the state and required assistance and required to be located and recovered, we would do exactly the same again."

He says he decided to coordinate the search because a minister was involved.

"I took the decision that because Mr Holding does have a standing within the government of the state, that it was appropriate for me to be there to be up there to ensure that things were going the way they should have gone," he said.

"I took that choice, because I thought it was important to do so.

"Now if it was somebody from the other parts of the state, I don't know whether I would be there, I don't know whether I wouldn't be there.

"It's something that I would make a value judgment on at the time, as to whether I think it is appropriate for me in my role as deputy commissioner for public safety, whether it be appropriate for me to be there."

Mr Brumby concedes that senior police only became involved in the operation because of Mr Holding's media profile.

"Kieran Walshe was sent up there I guess because Tim is a high profile person who's known, and you needed that level of coordination particularly with the media," he said.

"But apart from that, in all other way, shape, form and dimensions he's had exactly the same support as would any other Victorian or Australian who is lost in the snow."

Deputy Commissioner Walshe says he has not costed the search, and rescue operation costs are met by the Victoria Police budget.

"From my perspective that's not a priority for me. The priority for me was to ensure that we conducted a search that resulted in the safe recovery of Mr Holding," he said.

"We did that, and that's the success of the operation. What the cost is to me is not something I'm going to rush into to find out."

Victoria Police, SES and dozens of volunteer bushwalkers took part in the search for Mr Holding.

Meanwhile a State Opposition MP has labelled Mr Holding, a "super-dill" for not carrying an emergency beacon on his solo hike up Mount Feathertop.

Liberal MP Bernie Finn says Mr Holding acted foolishly.

"The ordinary Joe from the suburbs who goes walking by themselves in winter in such an area is a dill, for a minister of the Crown to do it is just super-dill - that is just ridilulous for anybody to even think about that," he said.