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  "path": "/news/us/united-flight-us-military-black-hawk-helicopter-crash-near-miss",
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-27T02:19:52.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "British Airways axes flights to Middle East until June after airport drone strike chaos",
    "Ryanair customer locked in £4,500 two year legal fight over suitcase containing sentimental item",
    "Ryanair passenger refused £240 refund after 'phantom flight' landed 160 miles away",
    "collided in mid air",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nA Boeing jumbo jet almost collided with a US military helicopter in a near-miss which left air traffic controllers reeling.\n\nUnited flight 589, a Boeing 737-800, missed a Black Hawk military helicopter by just a few hundred feet on its approach to a California airport on Tuesday night.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe jumbo jet was headed to John Wayne Airport, in Santa Ana, California, at 8.40pm (3.40am GMT).\n\nOne controller said he would address the incident, describing it as \"not good\".\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\nThe Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has now said it is investigating the incident to determine if it violated a new policy that bans visual separation for helicopters near major airports.\n\nThe United flight came close enough to the military craft to receive an \"resolution advisory\" from its traffic avoidance system.\n\nAn air traffic controller said: \"United 589 just want to clarify here did you get uh… just a traffic call reference to the helicopter or did they restrict your altitude or anything?\"\n\nThe pilot responded: \"We had a resolution advisory for United 589, RA.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nOn the flight, which departed from San Francisco, California, were 162 passengers and six crew members.\n\nThe California Army National Guard confirmed the helicopter belonged to the military and said it was based at the Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos.\n\nThe helicopter was returning to Los Alamitos, California after a routine training mission and was in communication with air traffic control.\n\nThe National Guard said: \"A thorough review will be conducted in coordination with the appropriate agencies.\"\n\n### MID-AIR HORROR - READ MORE:\n\n\n\n\n  * British Airways axes flights to Middle East until June after airport drone strike chaos\n  * Ryanair customer locked in £4,500 two year legal fight over suitcase containing sentimental item\n  * Ryanair passenger refused £240 refund after 'phantom flight' landed 160 miles away\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nOn Thursday, legislation was passed to address concerns between helicopters and airplanes.\n\nConcerns around visual separation, where pilots use their eyes to measure the distance between aircraft rather than radio instruments, stemmed follows several incidents between helicopters and commercial aircraft.\n\nIn January 2025, an American Airlines regional jet and a military Black Hawk helicopter collided in mid air and killed 67 people near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.\n\nAnother incident was a near miss between an American flight and a police helicopter near San Antonio International Airport in Texas.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nIn a third incident, referenced in the new FAA rules, a Beechcraft 99 was set to land at Burbank Airport in California when a helicopter had to make a left turn on its final approach path to avoid collision with the flight.\n\nUnited Airlines issued a statement in response to the incident.\n\nIt said: \"During final approach to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, pilots on United Flight 589 were advised by air traffic control to watch for a military helicopter flying near the airport\n\n\"They saw the helicopter, and also received a traffic alert, which they responded to by leveling the aircraft. The United flight then landed safely.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "Boeing jumbo jet almost smashes into US military helicopter in yet another terrifying near-miss"
}