Two South African flight schools flagged by US authorities say the sanctions against them won’t affect operations. The Test Flying Academy of South Africa (TFASA), based in Oudtshoorn, and the International Flight Training Academy in George are two of 43 entities in 11 countries accused by the US department of commerce of “acting contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests”.
The academy in Oudtshoorn trains pilots from, among other countries, China. However, flight schools in the US, Canada and Australia have trained more Chinese pilots but remain unaffected.
Jean Rossouw, CEO of the Oudtshoorn academy and director of the George school, says the US actions will not affect the day-to-day operations because it does not buy military or restricted items from the US.
The restrictions against us do not state that we are involved in criminal activities or that any sanctions will be placed on our business
— Jean Rossouw
“The restrictions against us do not state that we are involved in criminal activities or that any sanctions will be placed on our business. The restrictions are an attempt at corporative smearing of our good reputation, which leaves a bitter aftertaste,” says Rossouw.
A third South African business, Pearl Coral 1173 CC, based in Oudtshoorn and Cape Town, is also the subject of the US restrictions.
Last year the UK government issued a “threat alert” after it discovered that about 30 retired Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter-jet instructors had been training Chinese military pilots. It claimed that the TFASA had been acting as an intermediary. The UK government said this training posed a “threat to UK and Western interests”.
But, Rossouw says, the UK’s ministry of defence said the Oudtshoorn school did not break any of that country’s laws.
The governments of Australia, UK and Germany have raised concerns about their retired fighter-pilot instructors training Chinese pilots because this may involve the sharing of Nato techniques.
Rossouw says the issue was raised because flight schools, especially in the US, are seeking more lucrative Chinese contracts.
The George school, in which the Oudtshoorn school owns shares, has been training civilian pilot cadets from China and other countries. Both schools are registered with the Civil Aviation Authority. The Oudtshoorn school is also registered as a military contractor with the National Conventional Arms Control Committee, which regulates South African trade in military armaments and services.
“We provide training services to a variety of clients in the aviation sector including the training of test pilots, flight test engineers, and basic operational instructor pilots under closely controlled security conditions,” Rossouw tells the FM. “Training exclusively involves unclassified procedures and materials are derived either from open sources or from the clients themselves.”
The US restrictions appear to relate to the arrest last September of Daniel Duggan, a former US Marine Corps pilot living in Australia. He was arrested on request of the FBI.
Rossouw says in 2012 Duggan was the instructor for a course in South Africa. He left South Africa and later worked for Steven Subin — also known as Su Bin — a Chinese national who admitted to being part of a conspiracy that involved Chinese military officers hacking the computer networks of major US defence contractors.
In 2016 Su Bin was sentenced by a US court to 46 months in federal prison and was released after serving his sentence. It is alleged that Duggan and Su Bin continued to work together after his release and until Duggan was arrested. Duggan is fighting extradition to the US.
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