A PARAGLIDER pilot feared for her life during a near miss with a military transport aircraft, an official report has revealed.

She was operating a paramotor - a paraglider powered by a motor - when she had a "very close encounter" with an Airbus A400M near Andover, Hampshire, according to the UK Airprox Board (UKAB).

The woman, who was not named in the report, "turned abruptly to the right" after spotting the aircraft, which was flown just 600 feet from her.

She told investigators "she thought she was going to die".

A400M's four turboprop engines are discribed as the most powerful in production by Airbus.

Each aircraft is 45 metres long and able to carry 32 tonnes of cargo.

The UKAB assessed the incident on July 18 as having the most serious degree of risk.

The woman was taking part in a training weekend with the British Paramotor Team ahead of the activity's world championships in Basingstoke in August.

A member of the board stated that there was a "very real risk" from the wake turbulence caused by the aircraft, and concluded that "the paramotor pilot's concerns about the risk posed were justified", the report said.

The pilot of the A400M, who was approaching Boscombe Down, an aircraft testing site in Wiltshire, said he did not take any avoiding action when he saw the woman as "it was quickly apparent" she would pass down the left-hand-side of his aircraft.

Investigators concluded that both pilots "shared an equal responsibility for collision avoidance".

They added that "providence had played a major part" in the woman escaping unhurt.