China is recruiting ex-British Air Force pilots to train its own fighter pilots, the BBC reported this morning. Western soldiers, politicians and experts are amazed at this. The first parliamentary questions have already been asked in the Netherlands.

As far as is known, thirty British pilots have gone to China, where they train fighter pilots on what to expect in combat against British, but also American and Dutch pilots. A Dutch Air Force officer is very concerned about this. “We will lose part of our tactical and technical lead.”

“This is a surprising and worrying announcement,” said Patrick Bolder, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Dutch Air Force. He has been in the service for almost forty years and has never heard of any Dutch or other western pilots being lured away from China. He thinks that’s a weakness. “You are admonished to be vigilant on duty. You will be screened for your contacts with countries like China and Russia. But after your service, you are no longer subject to this regime.”

The recruitment of British pilots cannot be separated from China’s leaps in modernizing and upgrading its own armed forces. Beijing is expanding its military hardware with enormous expenditures, for example with new aircraft carriers. In addition, training is urgently needed because the West is very far ahead in terms of combat experience.

“Element of Surprise Lost”

“The fighter pilots of the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain and the USA have comparable training,” says Bolder. “All got Euro–NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training and hold annual joint Red Flag exercises in Nevada that embody fighter jet doctrine. Every year they learn new techniques and tactics. If a pilot like that then trains pilots in China, you lose part of your lead.”

Bolder immediately refers to the tense situation around Taiwan, where China has recently shown its military muscles. “If Chinese pilots attack there and know in advance how their opponents will react, the Americans and Taiwanese lose the element of surprise. That’s often the most important thing: being able to mislead your opponent.”

In response to the BBC publication, D66 put parliamentary questions:

Vice Admiral Ben Bekkering of the Royal Netherlands Navy was also surprised by Chinese recruiting practices. “I didn’t see that coming. I know that China is working hard to acquire high-quality technical and military knowledge from the West. But I’m amazed that they poach old military personnel with money and let people be guided by that.” .”

“The British often go abroad to work after their military career,” says Bekkering. “But they are doing that in countries like Oman and not immediately for a strategic competitor. In the Netherlands I know from my time in service that these types of practices are discussed at a collegial level, but there is no list of countries you are not allowed to go to ‘work’.

Despite all the alarming sounds, it’s not immediately the case that Dutch fighter pilots are easily lured away from China with a lucrative offer, expects Bas Rietjens, associate professor of Intelligence in War and Conflict at Leiden University. “A Dutch F-16 pilot makes a good salary and then gets a sizeable pension, so I don’t see that any time soon.”

An Air Force pilot earns an average of 5,837 gross per month, which is 75,648 on an annual basis. According to the BBC, Chinese bounties for attracted British airmen totaled almost 270,000 euros.

However, some Dutch pilots do not stay with the defense organization until they retire, and this is where the weakness lies, says Air Force officer Bolder. “£240,000 is a lot of money, more than what you earn as a commercial pilot. If you stop working as a fighter pilot at 40, you have to wait until you’re sixty to get your pension. In between you could work for KLM or another airline: “But this market is closed because of Corona. And then the Chinese come up with an interesting offer.

Bolder points out that there is no legal barrier for former soldiers to work for China. “What’s holding you back, other than patriotism at most?”