Gerald “Runner” Brown, a retired USAF fighter pilot, is accused of violating the Arms Export Management Act by offering fight aviation coaching to PLAAF pilots with out a State Division license.
A former U.S. Air Drive pilot, Gerald Eddie Brown, Jr., callsign “Runner,” was arrested on Feb. 25, 2026. In keeping with the main points launched by the U.S. Division of Justice, the officer, 65, “was charged by prison criticism for offering and conspiring to offer protection companies to Chinese language army pilots with out authorization, in violation of the Arms Export Management Act (AECA).”
Listed below are the main points in regards to the investigation launched by the DoJ:
“America Air Drive educated Main Brown to be an elite fighter pilot and entrusted him with the protection of our Nation. He now stands charged with coaching Chinese language army pilots,” mentioned Assistant Legal professional Basic for Nationwide Safety John A. Eisenberg. “When U.S. individuals – whether or not army or civilian – present coaching to a overseas army, that exercise is illegitimate until they’ve a license from the State Division. The Nationwide Safety Division will use all instruments at its disposal to guard our army benefits and maintain to account those that would violate the AECA.”
“Gerald Brown, a former F-35 Lightning II teacher pilot with many years of expertise flying U.S. army plane, allegedly betrayed his nation by coaching Chinese language pilots to struggle in opposition to these he swore to guard,” mentioned Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. “The Chinese language authorities continues to use the experience of present and former members of the U.S. armed forces to modernize China’s army capabilities. This arrest serves as a warning that the FBI and our companions will cease at nothing to carry accountable anybody who collaborates with our adversaries to hurt our service members and jeopardize our nationwide safety.
“As an Air Drive Officer, Brown took an oath to defend our Nation in opposition to all enemies overseas and home, he broke that oath, and betrayed the nation, jeopardizing the security of our servicemembers and allies,” mentioned U.S. Legal professional Jeanine Ferris Pirro for the District of Columbia. “We are going to maintain Brown, and anybody conspiring in opposition to our Nation, accountable for his or her actions. The Division of Justice and my prosecutors are steadfast in our dedication to make use of each lawful software obtainable to maintain American army experience the place it belongs – right here in America.”
“Offering U.S. army coaching to our adversaries represents a major risk to nationwide safety,” mentioned Lee M. Russ, Government Director of the Air Drive Workplace of Particular Investigations Workplace of Particular Tasks. “AFOSI stays dedicated to countering the risk posed by those that violate the belief positioned in them and endanger our service members.”
Though he’s described in media experiences and official paperwork as an F-35 teacher pilot, Brown has lengthy left energetic responsibility: he served for twenty-four yr within the U.S. Air Drive and left the service in 1996 (nicely earlier than the Joint Strike Fighter entered energetic service) with the rank of Main. His background is different and contains expertise as fighter pilot teacher and simulator teacher with the F-4, F-15, F-16 and A-10. After retiring he served as a business cargo pilot and, most lately, as a contract simulator teacher for 2 totally different U.S. protection contractors coaching U.S. army pilots on flying the A-10 and the F-35.
Subsequently, not an F-35 fighter jock, however a simulator teacher who helps F-35 and A-10 pilot coaching in digital fight situations.
Brown was not alone. Primarily based on the criticism, he wilfully conspired with overseas nationals and U.S. individuals to coach PLAAF (Individuals’s Liberation Military Air Drive) pilots. Fighter pilot coaching is a protection service regulated beneath the Worldwide Visitors in Arms Laws (ITAR): a license from the State Division’s Directorate of Protection Commerce Controls (DDTC) is required to overseas individuals or overseas army items. Brown didn’t get the required license, nonetheless, in August 2023, he started arranging the phrases of his contract to coach Chinese language army pilots, utilizing a co-conspirator to barter with Stephen Su Bin, a Chinese language nationwide who in 2016 pled responsible within the U.S. District Courtroom for the Central District of California to conspiring to hack into the pc networks of main U.S. protection contractors and steal delicate army and export-controlled knowledge for the PRC.
Some acquainted names concerned — Like Su Bin, who was convicted of stealing recordsdata associated to the F-22, F-35 and others for China again in 2014. He was given 46 months in jail, and appears to have gotten proper again to work upon his launch.
— Alex Hollings (@AlexHollings52) February 26, 2026
He was sentenced to almost 4 years in jail. Su Bin and his firm PRC Lode Expertise Firm had been additionally added to the U.S. Division of Commerce’s Entity Checklist in 2014.
The communications depart little room for interpretation: his exchanges clearly present that his objective was to coach PRC army pilots in fight plane operations. Within the resumé he submitted as a part of his job software, he listed his “goal” as “Teacher Fighter Pilot.” One of many co-conspirators informed him he hoped Brown could be posted to “my base, however in any other case you’ll go the place is the native equal because the [U.S. Air Force] Weapon Faculty.”
At one level, after discussing the chance, Brown wrote to a co-conspirator that after in China, “Now…. I’ve the possibility to fly and instruct fighter pilots once more!”
In December 2023, he traveled to China. His first day at work was spent answering questions in regards to the U.S. Air Drive for roughly three hours. On the second day, he ready and delivered a private temporary for the PLAAF. Brown remained in China till returning to the USA in early February 2026.
This isn’t the primary time former pilots are charged with offering coaching companies to Chinese language army pilots with out authorization.
In September 2017, federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C., charged former U.S. Marine Corps pilot Daniel Edmund Duggan with offering, and conspiring to offer, help in coaching Chinese language pilot, in violation of the Arms Export Management Act. He was additionally accused of conspiring to have interaction in worldwide cash laundering.
Identical to Brown, Duggan supplied his experience, grown via intensive and extremely specialised coaching throughout his time in U.S. army service. Particularly, he allegedly educated PLA pilots on the ways, strategies and procedures associated to plane provider operations, one of the crucial delicate talent units in naval aviation (that China is keen to amass). He was arrested in Australia in October 2022 and remains to be combating extradition to the U.S.
In 2022, we reported claims that China had been concentrating on former British army pilots with profitable contracts to assist practice the PLAAF. Within the UK, dozens of former pilots had been reportedly supplied packages price round 270,000 USD per yr. A few of them had expertise on plane sorts not in British service, making their data significantly precious.
On the time, in line with media experiences, recruitment efforts had been allegedly funneled via a South Africa-based middleman tasked with figuring out and hiring Western pilots to assist such coaching applications.
In June 2024, the USA, along with Australia, the UK, Canada and New Zealand, issued a joint bulletin warning that China’s Individuals’s Liberation Military continues to focus on present and former army personnel from NATO nations and different Western international locations to strengthen its capabilities.
The message was bolstered in February 2025 by Gen. James B. Hecker, then commander of NATO Allied Air Command and U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa who mentioned: “When you fly on our crew, even after you dangle up your uniform, you’ve a duty to guard our ways, strategies and procedures.”
