BFF-64 UK jet expert held over ‘Chinese plot for military secrets’

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UK jet expert held over ‘Chinese plot for military secrets’

LONDON, June 14, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – British police confirmed Thursday they
had arrested a man under the Official Secrets Act amid reports of a feared
Chinese plot against F-35B stealth fighter jets.

Bryn Jones, 73, a former Rolls-Royce chief combustion technologist, was
arrested after the security services received intelligence that classified
information may have been passed to Beijing, The Sun newspaper reported.

British plane engines manufacturer Rolls-Royce, based in Derby, central
England, carried out top-secret work on the take-off and vertical landing
system for the F-35B Lightning II supersonic jet, being built by US defence
firm Lockheed Martin.

A spokeswoman for London’s Metropolitan Police told AFP that they had made
an arrest in Derbyshire on Tuesday as part of an investigation under the
Official Secrets Act.

British police do not confirm the identity of suspects who have not been
charged with an offence.

“The man, who is in his 70s and worked within private industry, was taken
to a police station in Derbyshire,” the spokeswoman said.

“He was released under investigation later that evening.

“Police officers executed a search warrant at an address in the West
Midlands, which is now complete. A search at an address in Derbyshire is
ongoing.

“We are not prepared to discuss further at this stage given the nature of
the investigation.”

Jones lists himself on the LinkedIn professional social network as a
visiting professor at the Aeronautical University of Xian in central China.

His page says he worked for Rolls-Royce from 1968 to 2003.

The Sun pictured plain-clothes officers at his home near Derby and said
police removed boxes.

Jones declined to comment when contacted at his home by the Press
Association news agency.

Contacted by AFP, Rolls-Royce said they could not comment on an ongoing
police investigation.

Proponents of the F-35 tout its speed, close air-support capabilities,
airborne agility and a massive array of sensors giving pilots unparallelled
access to information.

Nine international partners including Britain, Canada and Turkey are
helping pay for the jet’s development and are buying hundreds more of the
planes.

The F35-B has short take-off and vertical landing capabilities and Britain
received delivery of its first four jets last week.

A replacement for the Harrier G9 and the Tornado GR4, it is intended to be
Britain’s primary strike attack aircraft over the next three decades.

BSS/AFP/RY/1915 hrs