UK Working To Stop China From Recruiting Its Ex-Air Force Pilots
NDTV
UK media said that over 30 former pilots had accepted offers upwards of £240,000. Many of those recruited are in their 50s and having recently left the British air force
The UK government said on Tuesday it was taking "decisive steps" against a Chinese recruitment effort to bring in former and serving British air force pilots to train its military personnel.
While British military personnel frequently take part in training exercises with foreign armies, any collusion by ex-pilots with China -- which London has dubbed the "number one threat" to domestic and global security -- poses a serious concern.
"We are taking decisive steps to stop Chinese recruitment schemes attempting to headhunt serving and former UK Armed Forces pilots to train People's Liberation Army personnel," a spokesperson for the British defence ministry told AFP.
Armed forces minister James Heappey acknowledged to broadcaster Sky News that such collaboration "has been a concern within the ministry of defence for years".
