An official has stated that all former British service members who have accepted positions training Chinese military pilots “are almost likely increasing China’s military expertise and capability.”
Officials have disclosed that China has recruited dozens of former British military pilots to teach the Chinese military how to destroy western jets and helicopters, posing a “threat to UK interests.”
A defense analyst has described the situation as a shocking violation of security. According to a government official, some 30 former fast-jet and helicopter pilots are in China training pilots for the People’s Liberation Army.
A retired senior officer of the Royal Air Force exclaimed, “Wow, that’s awful. What were they thinking?”
The western official stated that Beijing is aggressively seeking to recruit a large number of active and former military pilots and other specialists from the RAF, the Royal Navy, and the British Army, as well as personnel from other western nations.
Tuesday, the Defence Intelligence service of the Ministry of Defence issued a “threat notice” to caution active and retired military people against such approaches.
James Heappey, minister of the Armed Forces, told that the recruitment of British pilots to train their Chinese counterparts has been a Ministry of Defense concern “for several years.”
According to him, those already in China have been contacted and counseled against continuing such activity.
Mr. Heappey stated that future legislation will make it criminal to disregard such warnings.
A sensible rule would be to not train foreign air forces without first confirming with the MOD that they are a foreign air force we want you to train.
China employs third-party headhunters, notably a South African company, to recruit staff, according to a western official.
The official referred to the company as the Test Flying Academy of South Africa but emphasized that it was unaffiliated with the South African government.
The UK appears incapable of preventing recruitment schemes.
The western official stated that the recruitment initiatives represented a “threat to UK and western interests” and that the government viewed them with “concern and displeasure.
All former British service members who have accepted positions training Chinese military pilots “are almost likely increasing China’s military knowledge and capability,” said the official.
Despite the possible threat to national security, the United Kingdom is incapable of stopping the recruitment schemes or compelling ex-service members who have accepted positions in China to return home – other than appealing to them.
It is not believed that anyone has violated the Official Secrets Act, which would constitute a criminal offense.
The Ministry of Defense stated it was attempting to make it far more difficult for China to recruit British military personnel.
“We are taking steps to discourage the recruitment of current and past pilots, and we want to prevent China from misinterpreting our earlier quiet on this issue as endorsement or agreement of this activity,” a western official said.
It is undoubtedly more than a trickle.
Since the beginning of the COVID shutdown in late 2019, an increase in recruiting has been observed.
Officials were unable to immediately determine the overall number of former British military personnel hired by the Chinese.
They were also unable to provide an estimate of how many current and past workers are being aggressively pursued, but stated, “It is more than a trickle.”
The identity of the former British military pilots who are already employed in China was not disclosed, but officials stated that a number of them were in their late 50s and had left the service for several years.
Without intervention, this behavior would almost probably impair the defense advantage of the United Kingdom and its partners, a western official warned.
What is China attempting to accomplish?
China is seeking pilots with extensive experience flying British and other NATO warplanes, such as the Typhoon and Tornado fighter jets and the Harrier jump jet, which used to operate off British aircraft carriers, to instruct its pilots on how to best counter their capabilities, according to a western official.
“It’s not training Chinese pilots on Western jets; it’s taking Western pilots with extensive expertise to help build the tactics and capabilities of the Chinese military air force,” said the official.
“The Chinese must comprehend the latest generation of tactics, techniques, and capabilities, should their force ever face these types of assets,”
Also included were British military helicopters such as the Wildcat and Merlin.
It is believed that China has attempted to recruit former pilots who were trained on the top-secret, fifth-generation F35 fast aircraft developed by the United States.
According to the official, it is believed that such measures have thus far been fruitless. These aircraft, each of which is valued at more than £100 million, employ extremely sensitive stealth technology co-developed with the United States and are great targets for espionage.
What is the UK doing to prevent the recruitment of former pilots?
To make it more difficult for China to recruit additional pilots, the Ministry of Defense has stated that legislation and employment contracts will be tightened.
A spokeswoman stated, “We are taking decisive action to prevent Chinese recruitment programs from recruiting serving and former UK Armed Forces pilots to teach People’s Liberation Army soldiers in the People’s Republic of China.
“All serving and former personnel are already subject to the Official Secrets Act, and we are reviewing the use of confidentiality contracts and non-disclosure agreements across the Department of Defense, while the new National Security Bill will create additional tools to address contemporary security challenges – including this one.”
Francis Tusa, a defense analyst, described the facts as “mind-boggling.”
Mr. Tusa told, “Let’s be frank: China is an enemy.”
“As a result, we have British citizens whose interests are best served by teaching our enemy how to defeat us. This is terrifying.”
The discoveries surfaced as new legislation is introduced on Tuesday to tighten the United Kingdom’s control of persons and organizations that work for hostile governments or foreign entities and attempt to influence domestic politics.
As an amendment to the National Security Bill, the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme will force anyone employed by a foreign government to report their activity or face punishment, as part of measures to combat espionage and malignant influence operations.
The chief of MI5 stated, “The United Kingdom is engaged in an unprecedented scale of strategic competition with regimes that aim to undermine our national security, democratic institutions, and commercial advantage.
