Tianrui Liang, a 21-year-old Chinese national and aeronautical engineering student at the University of Glasgow, was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport on April 7 after federal agents say he photographed restricted military aircraft at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska without authorization.
🇺🇸🇨🇳CHINESE NATIONAL ARRESTED AT JFK AFTER PHOTOGRAPHING U.S. MILITARY BASE
21-year-old Tianrui Liang used a long-lens camera to take pictures of RC-135 “surveillance” and E-4B “doomsday” aircraft at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, home to U.S. Strategic Command.… pic.twitter.com/VdeDqPBvRE
— NewsForce (@Newsforce) April 21, 2026
Federal court documents show Liang’s trip targeted three U.S. Air Force installations. He attempted to photograph B-1B Lancer bombers at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, but found the aircraft had been moved before proceeding to Offutt. He documented the E-4B Nightwatch and RC-135 reconnaissance variants at Offutt, and planned to photograph additional E-4Bs at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma before departing.
Offutt hosts U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM), the command responsible for U.S. nuclear deterrence. The E-4B Nightwatch, a Boeing 747-200 variant assigned to the 595th Command and Control Group, functions as an airborne nuclear command post.
A witness reported seeing “a male holding a camera with a telescopic lens” near the base on March 31.
A Chinese citizen was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport for allegedly violating federal law and taking photos of aircraft at Offutt Air Force Base.
Tianrui Liang, 21, was arrested on April 7 by agents in New York.
According to federal court documents,… pic.twitter.com/eFaUqx3ewR
— -&C. Communiqué 🇺🇸 (@ClearCastComms) April 21, 2026
FBI review of Liang’s camera found “numerous photographs of planes located on the OAFB flightline,” per an affidavit from Special Agent Noah Heflin.
Liang told investigators he used a planespotter website to identify photography locations and said the images were for his “personal collection.” The affidavit states he knew the activity was prohibited. “He knew it was illegal to take pictures of the planes on the ground,” it states.
Liang entered the United States through Canada and traveled by road through Seattle and Montana to New York. Released on bail on April 8 after surrendering his passport, he was returned to custody on April 9 after a court found him to be a flight risk.
He is charged under Title 18 U.S. Code Section 795, which prohibits photographing vital military installations without authorization from a base commander.
Tianrui Liang, a 21-year-old Chinese national studying aeronautical engineering at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, was arrested by the FBI on April 7, 2026, at New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport for allegedly photographing sensitive U.S. military… pic.twitter.com/Wvz24DhjmE
— Kagan.Dunlap (@Kagan_M_Dunlap) April 21, 2026
The affidavit does not allege Liang acted on behalf of a foreign government.
