United flight narrowly avoids US military helicopter in California

A United Airlines flight carrying 162 passengers narrowly avoided colliding with a U.S. military Black Hawk helicopter near John Wayne Airport in southern California on Tuesday evening, forcing the pilots to abort their descent. The FAA is investigating the incident, which occurred when the military helicopter returning from a training mission crossed into the aircraft's flight path at approximately 8:40 p.m., triggering a collision-avoidance alarm. The two aircraft came within a few hundred feet of each other before the United pilots leveled off to prevent impact. The incident underscores ongoing safety concerns at busy civilian airports where military training operations occur in proximity to commercial air traffic.