LAPD chopper pilot fumes after avoiding mid-air disaster with military helicopters: ‘You guys need to pay attention’

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An LAPD pilot was left fuming after he was forced to move out of the way of approaching military aircraft on Tuesday.

Footage aired by CBS Los Angeles captured the two military helicopters flying over the 101 Freeway in Hollywood near the area where the LAPD aircraft was operating.

Out of precaution, the LAPD pilot altered the helicopter’s flight path to avoid the approaching aircraft before returning to its original position once the military helicopter had passed.

Audio of the incident captured the LAPD pilot repeatedly announcing his position.

“You guys just pushed me out of a spot. I got a suspect hiding. You guys got to pay attention, man. That’s ridiculous,” the LAPD pilot could be heard saying.

“Gonna ram me over, dude,” the pilot added.

The close-call happened over Los Angeles while LAPD’s Air 3 helicopter was circling a call in Echo Park and received an alert about nearby aircraft, LAPD Officer Eisenman told the California Post.

The police crew spotted a military helicopter approaching and attempted to contact its pilots over a shared aviation radio frequency, but received no response, Eisenman explained.

“When the military helicopter did not respond on the frequency, Air 3, in an abundance of caution, changed their flight profile,” Eisenman said.

Pilots operating in the area are expected to broadcast their locations over a common radio frequency so other aircraft can remain aware of nearby air traffic.

However, LAPD officials told the station that the military helicopters did not respond to the police pilot’s radio transmissions, prompting him to take evasive action.

Amelia Umayam, a U.S. Navy spokesperson confirmed to The California Post that the aircrafts were U.S. Navy helicopters and that they were doing a training exercise with the U.S. Coast Guard and Los Angeles Police Department on Nov. 3.

“During the exercise, the Navy aircrew were monitoring and communicating on required radio frequencies. We are committed to operating safely with our partners,” she added.

It remains unclear how close the helicopters came to one another or why the military aircraft did not respond to the LAPD pilot’s transmissions.

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