Senator Warns of Threat Posed by Chinese Nationals Receiving US Flight Training

.

Sen. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) is urging federal aviation security officials to tighten oversight of U.S. flight schools training Chinese nationals, warning that these programs must “serve American interests” and not the Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s “dreams.”

He warned that the CCP is employing a strategy called military-civil fusion that “deliberately erases” the boundary between the civil and the military sectors, meaning that Chinese trainees could become airmen for the Chinese military.

“Each Chinese citizen trained at an American flight school helps break through China’s pilot bottleneck,” Banks wrote. “While many of these students will go on to civilian and not military careers, the Chinese Communist Party, through its Military-Civil Fusion strategy, has foreclosed our ability to view this training with the benefit of a doubt.

“The more Chinese citizens there are with aviation training, the more options the Chinese military has to recruit pilots and instructors for its malign purposes.”

Banks, who serves on the Armed Services Committee, noted that China faces a shortage of both military and civilian pilots, a challenge that could hinder the CCP’s “aviation ambitions.”

To overcome the shortage, the Shijiazhuang Flight Academy under the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has “shortened its training cycle from four years to three,” and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) “has lowered standards” to bring in more candidate pilots, according to the letter.

Beijing also allows prospective pilots to train in U.S. flight schools approved by its Civil Aviation Administration of China, Banks wrote, pointing to one in Phoenix, Arizona, and another in Atwater, California.

Citing “The Invisible Coup: How American Elites and Foreign Powers Use Immigration as a Weapon” by investigative author Peter Schweizer, Banks said China needs approximately 5,000 new pilot cadets each year to meet both military and civilian demand. However, its domestic flight schools produce only about 1,200 annually, underscoring its reliance on training programs in the United States.

Banks asked the TSA to make changes to its Flight Training Security Program, which is a screening process to ensure that non-U.S. citizens seeking flight training in the United States do not pose a security threat.

“Therefore, I respectfully request that TSA update the Flight Training Security Program to preclude individuals from foreign adversary nations, such as China, from attending flight training schools in the United States,” Banks stated.

The Epoch Times contacted TSA for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

“Fantastic to see Senator Jim Banks take up the threat I mentioned in ‘The Invisible Coup’: the fact that Chinese pilots are being trained in the United States at private flight schools,” Schweizer wrote.

The PLAAF will play a vital role in a conflict over Taiwan, a self-governing island that the Chinese regime is aiming to take over, according to the report.

“In 2024, the PLAAF maintained a ready force posture for a variety of capabilities necessary for a Taiwan contingency,” the report reads.

“The PLAAF’s more advanced aircraft, such as the J-16 and J-20, presents the PLA with a growing inventory and standoff capability, which probably will challenge U.S. or allied forces in a conflict.”

The report also projected that China will have nine aircraft carriers by 2035, up from the three currently operated by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy.

“China expects to be able to fight and win a war on Taiwan by the end of 2027,” the report states.

.