Two passenger jets taking off on parallel runways at San Francisco International Airport nearly collided earlier this month, federal officials told CBS News.

The incident happened on May 13 at about 5:10 p.m. involving United Airlines and SkyWest Airlines planes departing nearly simultaneously.

The Federal Aviation Administration said that upon departure, the United flight veered directly into the path of the SkyWest flight without authorization.

United Flight 1152, an Airbus A320, was headed for Dallas-Fort Worth International. SkyWest Flight 5272, a CRJ-200, was headed to Fresno-Yosemite International.

The aviation website One Mile at a Time reported the United jet made a sharp turn to the left instead of turning right, as it was supposed to. The report said at their closest points, the planes were just 0.4 nautical miles apart horizontally and 280 feet apart vertically.   

United says that it was reviewing the incident. The FAA said it was investigating, and the initial information was subject to change.