It was 20 years ago this week that US television viewers sat rapt before their television screens as a fugitive OJ Simpson led law enforcement officers on a slow chase on the freeways of Southern California.

Simpson was to turn himself in after being arrested for the murders of ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ronald Goldman.

But the ex-NFL star turned actor and pitchman instead decided to flee in a white Bronco with his friend Al Cowlings behind the wheel.

Capturing the action from the sky on the June day in 1994 were two male TV helicopter pilots and bitter rivals by the names of Bob Tur of CBS and Dirk Vahle of NBC.

Tur was first on the air with the riveting chase with Vahle close behind.

They were two rivals who hated each other until about a year ago when after years of not seeing each other, they discovered that each was transgender and were now living life as women, according to the radio program Off-Ramp.

Tur, now called Zoey, says: ‘When you go through something like this, it’s like going to war. It’s very, very rough, and you need people out there who understand. (Vahle) was very understanding.’

Vahle, whose name is now Dana, still disputes Tur’s claim that she was first on the scene.

‘Everybody at my station feels very strongly that we were actually there before Bob Tur was there, which, of course, is something we all wanted to do in that market at that point,’ she said.

NBC delayed going on the air with the chase while Tur got on the air almost immediately after spotting the Bronco.

Whether first or second, Vahle now says: "I don’t think a lot about (the chase). But somebody will be talking to me, and I’ll say, "I did the O.J. chase." And that freaks them out.’