Su Bin, a Chinese national, was arrested in Canada late last month on a provisional warrant, a spokeswoman for the FBI said on Friday. He had been attempting to obtain residency there.

U.S. prosecutors based in Los Angeles allege Su helped guide unidentified computer hackers in China on what technology they should procure from American company computer networks, the criminal complaint said. On occasion Su attempted to sell information gleaned by the hackers to state-owned Chinese companies, the filing said.

It said that beginning in 2009, Su and his co-conspirators targeted information related to parts and performance for the C-17 military cargo aircraft program at Boeing, as well as the F-22 and F-35 fighter jets.

An attorney for Su could not immediately be reached. In a statement, Boeing said it cooperated with U.S. authorities.

"We appreciate that the government brought its concerns about a potential compromise of our protected computer systems to our attention," the company said in an email.

Su is scheduled to appear in a Canadian court this month for a bail hearing, the FBI spokeswoman said.

The United States has identified industrial spying as a significant and growing threat. U.S. officials recently charged five Chinese military officers, accusing them of hacking into American companies to steal trade secrets.

China, angered by those allegations, shut down a bilateral working group on cyber security.

Su's case in U.S. District Court, Central District of California is United States of America vs. Su Bin, 14-1318.