A passenger plane bound for Teesside Airport had to take evasive action to prevent a mid-air collision with a military aircraft, a report revealed today.

The pilot of the KLM UK Fokker 50, carrying 37 passengers, had to dive and then climb to avoid a US Air Force F15E Eagle.

The incident happened as the passenger aircraft, travelling from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, was coming in to land at Teesside Aiport on August 13, 2001.

The Air Accident Investigation Branch report found that at their closest point the two aircraft were only 800 metres apart horizontally and 1,500ft vertically.

The two US crewmen on the F15 had been on a training exercise and were returning to RAF Lakenheath.

The AAIB report said that on approach to Teesside Airport an air traffic controller warned the pilot of the passenger plane that a fast-moving aircraft was five miles away and closing.

The report detailed how the crew of the fighter jet failed to spot the passenger aircraft on the horizon.

The civilian pilots were then alerted when the passenger plane's collision warning system sounded.

In response the pilot sent the plane into a dive but seconds later the warning system sounded again, telling the crew to climb immediately.

As the F15 passed below, the captain's radar display showed the military plane as being just 300ft below the passenger plane.

Passengers were subjected to a force of 2G, but fortunately they had their seat belts secured as the "fasten seat belts" sign had been on at the time.

The rear seat crewman of the F15, which recorded the incident with an on-board video camera, said he had seen the passenger plane and estimated it was about 400ft above and would pass behind their aircraft.

A report by the safety and quality section of the Manchester Air Traffic Control and Airport found that the controller managing the situation had acted correctly by not giving any instructions that might have aggravated the situation.

Had evasive action not been taken, it is believed that the two planes would have only been 100ft apart vertically and 500 metres laterally.

The report added that this isn't the only near-miss in the region.

In March 2000 there was an incident involving a RAF Tornado jet and a Shorts SD-360 passenger plane.

As a result a number of recommendations were put into force by the Civil Aviation Authority.

The CAA is now looking into extending the area of controlled airspace around Newcastle and Teesside airports.