I have had lots of close-encounters but only two heart-stopping events in my 50 years of flying.
The worst one was when I was in the right seat of one of Mrs Windsor's new Argosy transports. At the moment in question, I was in the right seat acting as "lookout" and PNF. My leader (LHS) was on instruments practising coming off an NDB hold in a left turn. The weather was CAVOK
He had overcooked the turn on to the ILS (left turn) so rolled the wings level to attack the centreline. Suddenly, the windscreen was FILLED with a BOAC VC-10.
I took control and try to dive to the right but it was a complete waste of time for everything had gone into "slow motion" mode.
I saw the F/O in the VC-10 (staring ahead) and counted almost every cabin window passing me in slow motion and finally read G-AVRH off the tail bullet as it went past. Strangely, I don't remember seeing the wing tip going past.
We landed very quickly and went down to the local pub for a nervous breakdown!
At the subsequent Board of Inquiry, I was challenged about how I knew which VC-10 I had seen and, when I responded that I had read G-ARVH off the tail bullet, it was agreed that that must have been bl**dy close!
I dreamed about that incident for some years afterwards.
When you can see another aeroplane getting close, that is not a near miss.
When you encounter another aircraft and it doesn't matter what you do or it does but you still just miss, THAT is a near miss.