Gerald Eddie Brown Jr., a former US Air Force officer and F-35 pilot, was arrested Wednesday in Jeffersonville, Indiana, on charges of providing unauthorized defense services to the Chinese military.A criminal complaint accused Brown, 65, of providing defense services to Chinese military pilots and conspiring to provide them without authorization in violation of the US Arms Export Control Act (AECA).Brown is expected to make his first appearance before a Magistrate Judge in the Southern District of Indiana on Thursday, February 26.FBI Director Kash Patel shared news ofAccording to a statement from the US Department of Justice, Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division said that “Gerald Brown, a former F-35 Lightning II instructor pilot with decades of experience flying in US military aircraft, betrayed his country by training Chinese pilots to fight against those he swore to protect.”“The Chinese government continues to leverage the expertise of current and former members of the U.S. Armed Forces to modernize China’s military capabilities.
He added: “This arrest serves as a warning that the FBI and our partners will stop at nothing to hold accountable anyone who cooperates with our adversaries to harm our service members and endanger our national security.”Since at least August 2023, Brown has conspired with foreign nationals and U.S. persons to provide fighter aircraft training to pilots in the Chinese Air Force, known as the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).The training allegedly constitutes a “defense service” under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). As a US person under the ITAR, Brown was required to obtain a license from the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) before providing this training to foreign military personnel. Prosecutors say he did not have the required permission.In December 2023, Brown traveled to China to begin training pilots for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force. On his first day there, he allegedly answered questions for three hours about the US Air Force, and on the second day he gave a personal briefing to the Chinese military. He remained in China until his return to the United States in early February 2026.Investigators say Brown arranged the terms of his training contract through a co-conspirator who negotiated with Steven Su Bin, a Chinese national previously convicted in the United States for hacking into major U.S. defense contractors and stealing China’s sensitive military data.Su Bin pleaded guilty in 2016 and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison. He and his company, PRC Lode Technology Company, were added to the US Department of Commerce’s Entity List in 2014.According to the complaint, Brown openly expressed his intention to train Chinese military pilots. In his resume, he listed his purpose as “fighter pilot instructor.” In the messages cited by prosecutors, one co-conspirator told him he hoped Brown would be assigned to “my base, but otherwise you’ll go where the local equivalent of my base is.” [US Air Force] Weapon school.
Brown later wrote: “Now… I have the opportunity to fly and instruct fighter pilots again!” The statement added.“The U.S. Air Force trained Major Brown to be an elite fighter pilot and charged him with defending our nation,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg said in a statement. “He is now charged with training Chinese military pilots.”“When U.S. persons, whether military or civilian, provide training to a foreign military, such activity is illegal unless they have a license from the Department of State.
Eisenberg added that Homeland Security will use all tools at its disposal to protect our military advantages and hold accountable those who violate the Export Control Act.The case is being investigated by the FBI’s New York Field Office, with assistance from its offices in Louisville, Indianapolis and Los Angeles. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations also provided support.The charges against Brown follow similar allegations made against former US Marine pilot Daniel Edmund Duggan, who was charged in 2017 with providing unauthorized defense services to Chinese military pilots and conspiring to commit international money laundering crimes. Duggan was arrested in Australia in October 2022 and is currently awaiting extradition to the United States.
Who is F-35 pilot Gerald Eddie Brown Jr.?
Brown served more than 24 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring from active duty in 1996 with the rank of major. During his career, he commanded critical units responsible for nuclear weapons delivery systems, commanded combat missions, and served as a fighter pilot and simulator instructor.He flew several advanced aircraft, including the F-4 “Phantom II”, the F-15 “Eagle”, the F-16 “Fighting Falcon”, and the A-10 “Thunderbolt II” (the Warthog). After leaving active duty, he served as a commercial cargo pilot and later as a contract simulator instructor for U.S. defense contractors, training U.S. military pilots on the A-10 and F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft.
