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SYDNEY (AP) — A Sydney court on Monday postponed an extradition hearing for a former U.S. military pilot accused of illegally training Chinese aviators until May as his lawyers attempt to further build their case. Boston-born Dan Duggan, 55, was scheduled to fight his extradition to the United States at a Nov. 23 hearing in the downtown Downing Center Local Court. But a magistrate decided to use that date to rule on what additional information that the Australian defense department and security agencies should provide defense lawyers. U.S. lawyer Trent Glover told the court the United States was ready to proceed with the extradition, but had agreed with defense lawyers the hearing should take place after November. Duggan’s lawyers say they expect additional material will demonstrate the overtly political aspects of the extradition request.

Persons: Dan Duggan, Trent Glover, Duggan’s, Dennis Miralis, Dan, ” Miralis, Duggan's, Saffrine, Anthony Albanese, Joe Biden, Albanese, Duggan, “, ” Albanese, ” Duggan Organizations: SYDNEY, Sydney, Downing, Local, Australian, U.S . Marine Corps, Prosecutors, Test Flying Academy of South Locations: U.S, Boston, United States, Washington, Australian, Orange , New South Wales, China, Beijing, Test Flying Academy of South Africa

☆ Australia toughens ban on training 'certain foreign militaries' after pilot case
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FILE PHOTO: Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles speaks to the media at the 19th Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore June 12, 2022. A series of cases where former military pilots living in Australia had worked for a South African flight school training Chinese pilots, which the United States alleges are Chinese military pilots, has prompted the crackdown. Penalties of up to 20 years prison will apply for providing military training or tactics to a foreign military or government body, including hybrid civilian and military organisations, or state-owned companies, without authorisation from the defence minister. The Test Flying Academy of South Africa was placed on a U.S. trade blacklist on national security grounds in June for "providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources". A court was told Hartley, a former British military pilot, was suspected of organising the training of Chinese military pilots delivered by the flight school.

Persons: Richard Marles, Caroline Chia, authorises, recenty, Daniel Duggan, Keith Hartley, Hartley, Kirsty Needham, Lincoln, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Australian Defence, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, Defence, U.S . Marines Corp, Flying Academy of South, TFASA, Australian Federal Police, Thomson Locations: Singapore, Australia, African, United States, Britain, New Zealand, Canada, China, Australian, Flying Academy of South Africa, U.S, AVIC, British

“We’re horrified that something like this could happen, not only to us, but to anyone,” Saffrine Duggan told her supporters. Former US fighter pilot Daniel Duggan is in custody in Australia pending extradition to the US on charges including that he trained Chinese military pilots. Courtesy Saffrine DugganTraining Chinese pilotsDuggan doesn’t deny training Chinese pilots, but he maintains they were civilians – plane enthusiasts seeking to improve their skills or prospective members of China’s then rapidly expanding aviation industry. And a spokesperson for New Zealand’s Defence Force confirmed to Reuters that four of its former military pilots had been recruited by the company. It’s the wrong type of approach and landing.”In its statement to CNN, TFASA denied teaching aircraft carrier approach and landing techniques to Chinese military pilots.

Persons: Daniel Duggan, Duggan, Duggan’s, “, ”, Saffrine, “ We’re, ” Saffrine Duggan, Paul Devitt, Duggan –, –, ” Duggan, Saffrine Duggan, TFASA, they’re, Duggan doesn’t, China’s, Glenn Kolomeitz, ” “ Dan, Richard Marles, It’s, Constant, Daniel Duggan's, Mike Burgess, Ben Hancock, ” Hancock, Hancock, hasn’t, Dan didn’t, “ TFASA, he’s, Xi Jinping, reunify, Joe Biden, Ng Han Guan, Xi, Donald Trump, “ Don’t Organizations: Australia CNN —, Marine Attack Squadron, Intelligence, Security, Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Lithgow Correctional Centre, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC, US Marines, US State Department, of Defense Trade, Test Flying Academy of South, CNN, TFASA, Embassy, Former, Saffrine Duggan Training, Australian Defence Force, RAF, UK Defence Ministry, UK Armed Forces, Australia’s, New Zealand’s Defence Force, Reuters, Marles, ASIO, Buckeye, Marine Corps, US Navy, Aircraft, Training Squadron, US Department of Defense, Harrier, Getty, Pacific Locations: Brisbane, Australia, United States, Yuma , Arizona, China, Beijing, Lithgow, Sydney, Australian, Test Flying Academy of South Africa, Tasmania, South Africa, Former US, New South Wales, Persian, Asia, Townsville, Pensacola, Fla, Western, Taiwan, AFP

☆ Flight training for Chinese military pilots targeted in latest US export crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 12 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Monday added 43 entities to an export control list, including Frontier Services Group Ltd, a security and aviation company previously run by Erik Prince, for training Chinese military pilots and other activities that threaten U.S. national security. The Test Flying Academy of South Africa, a flight school under scrutiny by authorities in Britain for recruiting British ex-military pilots to train Chinese military fliers, was also added to the U.S. Commerce Department's Entity List. The aviation-related companies were listed for providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources, according to a rule posted for the Federal Register. Thirty-one Chinese entities in total were added to the list, some for acquiring U.S.-origin items in support of China's military modernization, such as hypersonic weapons development. Nine Chinese and Pakistani companies were added based on their contributions to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program and other weapons contributions.

Persons: Biden, Erik Prince, Prince, Karen Freifeld, Chris Sanders, Alistair Bell Organizations: Frontier Services Group Ltd, Flying Academy of South, U.S . Commerce, Frontier Services Group, United, United Arab Emirates, Federal Register, U.S, Shanghai Supercomputing Technology, Solutions, Thomson Locations: U.S, Flying Academy of South Africa, Britain, China, Kenya, Laos, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, United Kingdom, Xinjiang, China's, Latvia

☆ Australian police searched pilot's home for China fighter jet records
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SYDNEY, May 2 (Reuters) - Australian police searched the home of a British former test pilot for documents related to China's J-16 strike fighter, Australia's intelligence partners, and China's biggest aviation company, a court judgment shows. The search in November was part of an investigation into Western military pilots training China's military at a time of growing tension between China and the United States and its allies. Federal police searched Hartley's home on suspicion he had broken the law by providing military style training directed or funded by China between 2018 and 2022, the Federal Court heard. The judgement shows police had searched for documents and digital records including emails and encrypted messages relating to TFASA, the PLA, four models of PLA fighter jets and fighter training aircraft including the J-16 strike fighter and J-11 fighter, AVIC and two individuals whose names were redacted. It states conduct capable of constituting an offence, and it does so with a reasonable degree of precision," she wrote.

☆ Australia launches review into former pilots training Chinese military
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Australia will launch a review into the obligations former Defence Force personnel have to protect state secrets, following reports that Australians were among the Western military pilots who had been approached to help train the Chinese military. Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Wednesday the intelligence agencies and Australian Federal Police were "investigating a number of cases" in Australia, and announced a review into the policies and procedures governing Australian Defence Force personnel. "It's important that we have the most robust framework possible that is in place to protect Australia's information and protect our secrets." Britain has said it would change its national security laws to stop former military pilots being recruited by third-party agencies to work in China, after reports up to 30 pilots had trained the Chinese military. An Australian citizen, Daniel Edmund Duggan, was arrested in New South Wales state in the same week that Britain announced the crackdown on former military pilots.

The British government said on Tuesday it was taking steps to stop China trying to recruit serving and former British military pilots to train the Chinese armed forces. The BBC reported up to 30 former military pilots had gone to train China's People's Liberation Army. read moreAustralia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said he had asked the defence department to investigate claims that former Australian military pilots had also been recruited to join a South African flight school that operated in China. The requirements included having graduated from military test flight schools in the United States or Britain. TFASA also runs a flight school for Chinese airline pilots in South Africa as a joint venture with one of China's largest state-owned aeronautic companies, AVIC, according to its website.

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