The United States Department of Justice on Wednesday announced the arrest of a former US Air Force fighter pilot accused of unlawfully providing military training to personnel of the Chinese Air Force.
In a statement, the Justice Department alleged that the ex-officer conspired with foreign nationals to deliver combat aircraft training to Chinese military pilots without obtaining the mandatory licence from the US State Department.
Confirming the development, FBI Director Kash Patel disclosed in a post on X that the suspect had been taken into custody.
He described the arrest as a major breakthrough, noting that the FBI, in collaboration with its partners, apprehended the former pilot over his alleged involvement in training members of the Chinese military.
According to authorities, the suspect, identified as Brown, served in the US Air Force for 24 years.
During his military career, he reportedly commanded sensitive units responsible for nuclear weapons delivery systems, led combat operations and worked as both a fighter pilot instructor and simulator instructor on several fighter and attack aircraft platforms.
After retiring from active service in 1996, Brown reportedly transitioned to civilian aviation as a cargo pilot.
He later worked as a defence contractor in the United States, where he trained pilots on advanced aircraft, including the A-10 and the F-35 fighter jets.
Investigators alleged that in August 2023, he began discussions with Stephen Su Bin, a Chinese national previously jailed in the United States for four years from 2016 in connection with a separate espionage case.
Brown allegedly travelled to China in December 2023 to commence the training arrangement.
Reacting to the arrest, Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division accused the Chinese government of seeking to leverage the knowledge and experience of current and former US military personnel to strengthen its armed forces.
He warned that the arrest underscores the resolve of US authorities to pursue and prosecute individuals who collaborate with foreign adversaries in ways that threaten American service members and compromise national security.