Chinese intelligence officers charged in US aviation hacking

An American flag is flown next to the Chinese national emblem during a welcome ceremony for visiting U.S. President Donald Trump outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (AP)

LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors say Chinese intelligence officers and hackers working for them have been charged with commercial espionage that included trying to steal information on commercial jet engines.

Prosecutors say the indictments announced Tuesday include officers working for the foreign intelligence arm of China's Ministry of State Security.

Eight people were indicted in San Diego federal court with conspiring from 2010 to 2015 to steal sensitive turbofan engine technology used in commercial aviation.

Prosecutors say members of the conspiracy hacked into a French aerospace company that was developing the engines with a U.S. company. They also hacked into aerospace companies in Massachusetts, Oregon and Arizona that manufactured engine parts.

A Chinese state-owned aerospace company was working at the time to develop a similar type of engine for use in commercial aircraft.