Heart-stopping moment Air Force Thunderbird has to take evasive action amid fears of a midair crash during flyby over Southern California(11 Pics)

Dramatic footage caught the moment that one of the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds was forced to take evasive action during a flypast across Southern California.

Video shot from a news helicopter shows the formation heading towards Newport Beach. 

But as the tight formation of jets banked left, Thunderbird 6 on the far right of the formation was suddenly seen breaking away. 

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U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds were conducting a flypast of LA and San Diego

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In an instant, one of the aircraft made a sudden move to the right

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It forced two other planes to also move over and another left the formation

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The group lost formation for a short time but they planes quickly managed to regroup

As the formation was making a turn, the leader of the group in Thunderbird 1 makes a slight correction turn.

But that caused the pilot in Thunderbird 3 to also make a further adjustment.

The effect appeared to be magnified with Thunderbird 6 completely pulling away from the formation to avoid a potential collision. 

The group's precise delta formation is lost for a brief period of time but the group find themselves back together a short time later as they regrouped.

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Moments later, the aircraft were back in formation once against for the flypast

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The US Air Force Thunderbirds flypast was dedicated to the brave men and women on the front lines battling COVID

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The aircraft are part of ;America Strong' - a flypast to be held in various U.S. cities

It's not clear what caused the initial disturbance, however from cockpit videos released by the display team it is clear that there is no room for error with the aircraft often flying just mere feet from one another.       

The Thunderbirds display team were formed almost 70 years ago, and were in Southern California flying over Los Angeles County and San Diego on Friday as a tribute to healthcare and frontline workers dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

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The US Air Force Thunderbirds soar over Westwood in a salute to healthcare workers, first responders and other essential workers on the front lines during the coronavirus pandemic

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Chanthel Kokoy, left, a doctor at Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center, and her husband Eduardo Frias salute the United States Air Force Thunderbirds who fly over downtown LA

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The Thunderbirds prepare to takeoff for an America Strong flyover over California at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada

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Millions of people got to see the aircraft fly over southern California on Friday