The Chinese government is exploiting the expertise of former and current U.S. military members to modernize its own capabilities, said an FBI official.
A former U.S. Air Force pilot has been arrested and charged on suspicion of providing combat training to Chinese military pilots without requisite authorization, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a Feb. 25 statement.
Gerald Eddie Brown Jr., 65, was arrested Wednesday in Jeffersonville, Indiana, and charged with violation of the Arms Export Control Act.
“Since at least in or around August 2023, Brown willfully conspired with foreign nationals and U.S. persons to provide combat aircraft training to pilots in the Chinese Air Force, known as the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF),” the DOJ said.
The alleged training was a defense service under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and Brown lacked the required license from the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls to provide the service to foreign military units, the statement said.
Brown served in the U.S. Air Force for more than 24 years, leaving active duty in 1996. During his tenure, Brown led combat missions, commanded sensitive units overseeing nuclear weapons delivery systems, and served as a pilot and simulator instructor for a wide range of aircraft, including the F-15, F-16, and A-10.
Most recently, he served as a simulator instructor for two defense contractors training U.S. pilots on flying the F-35 and A-10, the DOJ said.
In or around August 2023, Brown allegedly began arranging the terms of contract to train Chinese military pilots. In December that year, he traveled to China to start training Chinese military pilots, remaining in the country until early February 2026, when he traveled back to the United States, according to the DOJ statement.
Brown is expected to have his initial appearance before a magistrate judge on Feb. 26 at the Southern District of Indiana.
“The Chinese government continues to exploit the expertise of current and former members of the U.S. armed forces to modernize China’s military capabilities,” said Roman Rozhavsky, assistant director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division.
“This arrest serves as a warning that the FBI and our partners will stop at nothing to hold accountable anyone who collaborates with our adversaries to harm our service members and jeopardize our national security.”
The Epoch Times was unable to reach out to legal representatives for Brown.
