Australian Judge Denies Extradition Appeal for Former US Pilot
An Australian judge has turned down an appeal from former US Marine Corps pilot Daniel Duggan seeking to evade extradition to the US. The allegations against him date back over a decade, claiming that he unlawfully trained Chinese military aviators.
Duggan, while employed at the South African Test Flight Academy, is said to have provided training to Chinese military pilots. He firmly denies these charges, labeling them as a political maneuver and suggesting that he has been unjustly targeted by the US authorities.
In a ruling by Federal Court Judge James Stelios, the appeal was rejected, with the judge determining that then-Attorney General Mark Dreyfuss acted appropriately in initiating Duggan’s extradition in 2024.
Outside the courthouse in Canberra, Duggan’s wife, Safryn, who is also the mother of six, expressed her disappointment, revealing that they are contemplating another appeal. She mentioned that they are also requesting the current Attorney General, Michel Rowland, to revoke the extradition order.
“We are extremely disappointed in this verdict and will carefully consider our options. But make no mistake, we will not give up,” she stated. “Our quest for justice does not end today.”
Rowland’s office acknowledged the court’s ruling, confirming that Duggan will remain in extradition custody in Australia until he is handed over to the United States.
A U.S. District Court indictment from 2016, revealed in late 2022, charges Duggan with conspiring with others to train Chinese military pilots in 2010 and 2012, along with potential activities in other years, without the necessary licenses.
Prosecutors allege that Duggan received approximately nine payments totaling around 88,000 Australian dollars (equivalent to $61,000) from a co-conspirator, along with travel expenses to the US, South Africa, and China, which were described vaguely as “self-development training.”
Duggan, now 57 and originally from Boston, has been incarcerated in a maximum-security facility since his arrest in 2022 at a supermarket close to his family’s home in New South Wales.
