China hires ex-British pilots, warns UK

China is recruiting former British military pilots with the lure of huge sums of money to exchange their experience with the Chinese military. On Tuesday (October 18), the British media reported this information about the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom.

According to the report, former British pilots are responding to the lure of huge Chinese money. As many as 30 UK military pilots are believed to have already traveled to the country to train members of China's People's Liberation Army.

The UK is issuing an intelligence alert to warn ex-British military pilots against working for the Chinese military, the BBC reports. Efforts to locate such pilots are ongoing. Western officials have also confirmed that it has been stepped up recently.

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It is known that the amount of money being offered to the pilots is very attractive, said a western official. According to him, in some cases they are being given up to 2 lakh 70 thousand dollars.

A spokesman for the UK Ministry of Defense said the recruitment or training of pilots does not contravene or breach any existing UK legislation. But officials in the UK and other countries are trying to curb this activity.

Retired British pilots are being used to understand how Western fighter jets and pilots operate, says the BBC. This information could become important in a conflict like Taiwan.

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A Western official said the country is drawing on the great experience of Western military pilots to help develop the strategy and capabilities of China's air force.

Some of China's chartered pilots are approaching the age limit of fifty and have long since retired from the military. Not only the UK but also the pilots of its other allied countries are offered.

In 2019, the UK learned about the recruitment of former military pilots, which were then investigated on a case-by-case basis. However, this trend declined during the Covid pandemic, when travel to China was almost impossible. However, after issuing intelligence alerts, it is believed that such incidents are happening again in recent times.