Former US Air Force pilot charged for allegedly training Chinese military pilots

Brown was charged by criminal complaint for allegedly providing and conspiring to provide defence services to Chinese military pilots without authorisation, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act.

Brown was expected to have his initial appearance before a Magistrate Judge in the Southern District of Indiana on 26 February 2026.

“The United States Air Force trained Major Brown to be an elite fighter pilot and entrusted him with the defence of our nation. He now stands charged with training Chinese military pilots,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A Eisenberg said.

“When US persons – whether military or civilian – provide training to a foreign military, that activity is illegal unless they have a licence from the State Department.

“The National Security Division will use all tools at its disposal to protect our military advantages and hold to account those who would violate the AECA.”

As alleged in the complaint, since at least in or around August 2023, Brown willfully conspired with foreign nationals and US persons to provide combat aircraft training to pilots in the Chinese Air Force, known as the People’s Liberation Army Air Force.

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This training was a defence service under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and Brown, a US person under the ITAR, lacked the required licence from the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls to provide that training to foreign persons or foreign military units.

“Gerald Brown, a former F-35 Lightning II instructor pilot with decades of experience flying US military aircraft, allegedly betrayed his country by training Chinese pilots to fight against those he swore to protect,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division.

“The Chinese government continues to exploit the expertise of current and former members of the US armed forces to modernise China’s military capabilities.

“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 jeopardise our national security.”

Brown served for over 24 years in the US Air Force, leaving active duty in 1996 with the rank of major.

During his lengthy military career, Brown commanded sensitive units with responsibility for nuclear weapons delivery systems, led combat missions, and served as a fighter pilot instructor and simulator instructor on a variety of fighter and attack aircraft, including the F-4 “Phantom II”, F-15 “Eagle”, F-16 “Fighting Falcon” and the A-10 “Thunderbolt II” (Warthog).

Brown then served as a commercial cargo pilot and, most recently, as a contract simulator instructor for two different US defence contractors training US military pilots on flying the A-10 and the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter.

According to the complaint, in or around August 2023, Brown began arranging the terms of his contract to train Chinese military pilots, using a co-conspirator to negotiate with Stephen Su Bin, a Chinese national who, in 2016, pled guilty in the US District Court for the Central District of California to conspiring to hack into the computer networks of major US defence contractors and steal sensitive military and export-controlled data for the PRC. He was sentenced to nearly four years in prison. Su Bin and his company, PRC Lode Technology Company, were also added to the US Department of Commerce’s Entity List in 2014.

Throughout these communications, Brown consistently stated his intent to train PRC military pilots in combat aircraft operations. In the resumé he prepared for his application, Brown wrote his “objective” as “Instructor Fighter Pilot”.

A co-conspirator told Brown that he hoped Brown would be assigned to “my base, but otherwise you’ll go where is the local equivalent as the [US Air Force] Weapon School”. Later, he stated to a co-conspirator that, upon his arrival in China, “Now …. I have the chance to fly and instruct fighter pilots again!”

In December 2023, Brown travelled to China to begin his work training PRC military pilots. After his arrival, Brown answered question for three hours about the US Air Force on his first day in the PRC and then, on his second day, prepared and presented a brief about himself for the PLAAF. Brown remained in China until he travelled to the United States in early February 2026.

“As an Air Force Officer, Brown took an oath to defend our nation against all enemies foreign and domestic, he broke that oath, and betrayed the country, jeopardising the safety of our servicemembers and allies,” said US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro for the District of Columbia.

“We will hold Brown, and anyone conspiring against our nation, accountable for their actions. The Department of Justice and my prosecutors are steadfast in our commitment to use every lawful tool available to keep American military expertise where it belongs – here in America.”