FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Pierre-Henri Chuet, a former French Air Force pilot turned YouTube star, is the subject of a preliminary investigation by the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office for suspected espionage for China...
For at least six years, China has been building an espionage scheme to gather Western aviation expertise. This is revealed by an investigation opened by the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office on suspicion of "espionage for the benefit of a foreign power" and "disclosure of a national defense secret." The investigation is underway against a former French army pilot who is suspected of working for China.
The former pilot had been under surveillance for years by the French defense security agency, the Defense Intelligence and Security Directorate (DRSD), which raised the alarm about the situation.
The former French soldier has been identified as Pierre-Henri Chuet. He is just one of several Western military pilots who have worked on behalf of their counterparts in the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) through a well-camouflaged system.
Intelligence Online first revealed the existence of this scheme in 2019, then in May 2022 detailed the system that Beijing had put in place to train its pilots using Western expertise.
These secret training sessions were provided by a South African company called the Test Flight Academy of South Africa (TFASA). TFASA recruited former Western air force pilots at extremely high salaries - some were offered up to $30,000 a month - before sending them to China to undergo training.
From China, it was the semi-public entity Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), which took responsibility for ground operations.
Intelligence Online identified at least three French pilots with experience in the Rafale who are among the Chinese military's consultants, as well as several Australians and Britons.
Organizing such training has been a boost for the PLA, which is seeking to gain expertise and information on its adversaries, as well as observe and understand the modus operandi and rules of engagement of Western air forces.
In October 2022, the British Ministry of Defense issued a warning to its pilots, especially those operating the latest F-35 aircraft, urging them not to be tempted by such Chinese "generosity."
In the wake of this, Washington declassified its first judicial investigation on the subject, which targeted a foreigner who played a key role in the Chinese military network, former US-Australian naval aviator Daniel Duggan.
In the wake of this affair, a number of Western states have attempted to tighten their legal systems in an attempt to prevent this type of intangible assistance to strategic adversaries. / Adapt Pamphlet /
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