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HONG KONG, Nov 25 (ANI): China has recruited more than 30 former British military pilots, including those who have flown advanced fighter jets. The Ministry of Defense said it was recruiting them to train pilots for the Chinese army.
According to the Hong Kong Post, China plans to confront the West, and in the worst case, such as a conflict over Taiwan, then China will have prior knowledge of Western tactics as far as air combat is concerned.
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The UK has confirmed that China has been recruiting former military pilots since 2019. Cases of pilots traveling to China are reportedly on the rise again in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Notably, the pilots hired had experience flying a variety of aircraft, including the Typhoon, Jaguar, Harrier and Tornado, according to the Hong Kong Post.
The Chinese have tried, and may have been somewhat successful, in employing retired Air Force pilots, suggesting that more countries may be involved in this kind of espionage.
The UK and Australia have already made it public. Using South Africa as an intermediary, however innocuous, means China may use the continent as a springboard for returning retired pilots to China.
In one sense, such activities should not come as a surprise to the West. According to the Hong Kong Post, the West has long been aware of China’s ability to steal technology and then reverse engineer it.
Today, China goes a step further and steals Western manpower in the form of manpower with air combat expertise.
The aim is to train Chinese pilots to keep Western tactics in mind in the event of a future conflict. In addition, these pilots may fly Chinese fighter jets and suggest improvements to improve combat performance, according to the Hong Kong Post.
In October, Australia and the United Kingdom began investigating reports that their fighter pilots were planning to work in China to train pilots for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force.
The retired Western Air Force pilots were reportedly hired through an intermediary agency, in this case a flight academy in South Africa. According to the Hong Kong Post, the British government approached their pilots and asked them to stop their affair with China.
Britain’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) said it would take steps to prevent its retired and active pilots from training the Chinese military.
A MoD spokesman said: “We are taking decisive steps to stop a Chinese recruitment program that seeks to hunt down active duty and former British Armed Forces pilots to train PLA personnel in the People’s Republic of China.”
The British Ministry of Defense claimed that China has been using “big money” to attract former British Air Force pilots and let them pass on their professional knowledge and related training to the Chinese army. Some of the packages cost as much as £237,911 ($270,000), Hongkong Post reported.
The UK first identified a small number of cases of former military pilots being recruited in 2019, which are dealt with on a case-by-case basis. The Covid-19 pandemic slowed attempts when travel to China became nearly impossible, but attempts have since increased.
Australian Defense Minister Richard Marrs has launched an investigation into whether Australian pilots were recruited by the Chinese Defense Forces. Action will be taken if systemic weaknesses are found to endanger Australian military secrets, the Hong Kong Post reported.
A preliminary investigation into reports of Chinese access to Australian fighter pilots has found enough evidence to warrant a wider investigation.
Allegations have emerged that the former Australian pilot joined the aforementioned South African flight school. In October, Australian authorities arrested former US Marine Corps officer Daniel Duggan at the request of the US. Duggan runs a private adventure flying company called Top Gun Australia. The arrested officials are also said to have worked in China, according to the Hong Kong Post. (Arnie)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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