Former US Air Force F-35 instructor arrested on charges of training Chinese military

ISTANBUL

A retired US Air Force officer who once instructed pilots on advanced fighter jets has been arrested and charged with conspiring to provide military training to China’s air force pilots, according to US authorities.

Gerald Eddie Brown Jr., 65, was taken into custody on Wednesday in Jeffersonville, Indiana, and charged with violating the Arms Export Control Act by allegedly training pilots from the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said in a statement.

“Providing US military training to our adversaries represents a significant threat to national security,” Lee Russ, executive director of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations Office of Special Projects, said in the statement.

Brown served 24 years in the US Air Force, retiring as a major in 1996. During his military career, he commanded units responsible for nuclear weapons delivery systems, led combat missions and worked as a fighter pilot and simulator instructor on multiple aircraft platforms, according to CNN.

He flew several types of fighter jets, including the Vietnam-era F-4 Phantom as well as F-15 and F-16 aircraft.

After leaving active duty, Brown flew commercial cargo planes and later joined two US defense contractors as a simulator instructor, where he trained American pilots to operate the F-35 Lightning II and the A-10 attack aircraft.

Prosecutors allege Brown spent more than two years in China after traveling there in December 2023, remaining until earlier this month, during which he trained PLA pilots. On his first day in China, he allegedly spent three hours answering questions about the US Air Force and later delivered a personal briefing to PLAAF personnel.

“Brown’s alleged betrayal exposed sensitive military tactics, threatening the security of our nation, our armed forces, and our allies,” said James Barnacle, assistant director in charge of the FBI New York Field Office.

Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, declined to comment on the case during a regular press briefing on Thursday, saying she was not familiar with the matter.

According to the US attorney's statement, Brown made contact with China through a co-conspirator who was in touch with Stephen Su Bin, a Chinese national who pleaded guilty in 2016 to conspiring to unlawfully obtain sensitive US military data and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison.

The case against Brown remains pending.