Htun Aung

{{Short description|Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Air Force and Burmese air force officer}} {{Family name hatnote|Htun Aung|lang=Burmese}} {{BLP sources|date=April 2026}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = {{ubl|His Excellency|General|Zayya Kyawhtin}} | name = Htun Aung | native_name = {{nobold|ထွန်းအောင်}} | native_name_lang = my | image = | alt = | caption = Htun Aung's visit to Thailand on 30 April | office = Minister of Defence | president = Min Aung Hlaing | term_start = 10 April 2026 | term_end = | predecessor = Maung Maung Aye | successor = | office1 = Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar Air Force | appointer1 = {{ubl|Min Aung Hlaing|Ye Win Oo}} | term_start1 = 12 January 2022 | term_end1 = 10 April 2026 | predecessor1 = Maung Maung Kyaw | successor1 = Lt Gen Tun Win | birth_date = {{birth year and age|1967}} | birth_place = Burma (now Myanmar) | party = | spouse = | relations = | children = | relatives = | alma_mater = Defence Services Academy | occupation = | signature =  | nickname = | allegiance = {{flag|Myanmar}} | branch = {{air force|Myanmar}} | service_years = | rank = 16px General | unit = | commands = | battles = Internal conflict in Myanmar *Myanmar civil war (2021–present) }}

'''Htun Aung''' ({{langx|my|ထွန်းအောင်}}; {{IPA|my|tʰʊ̀n àʊɴ|pron}}; born 1967) is a Burmese military air force officer who has served as the Minister of Defence since April 2026. A member of the Tatmadaw, he previously served as Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar Air Force from 2022 to 2026.

== Military career == Htun Aung graduated from the 29th batch of the Defence Services Academy.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-01-11 |title=ဗိုလ်ချုပ်ကြီး မောင်မောင်ကျော် လေတပ်ဦးစီးချုပ်ရာထူးမှ အနားပေးခံရ |url=https://www.rfa.org/burmese/news/general-maung-maung-kyaw-resigns-as-air-force-commander-in-chief-01112022015603.html |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=Radio Free Asia |language=my}}</ref> In 2020, he sat on the board of directors of Myanma Economic Holdings Limited, a military-owned conglomerate.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Military-Corporate conflicts of interest 'inflame' Myanmar's civil wars, rights group says |url=https://myanmar-now.org/en/news/military-corporate-conflicts-of-interest-inflame-myanmars-civil-wars-rights-group-says |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=Myanmar NOW |language=en}}</ref>

On 12 January 2022, Htun Aung was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Myanmar Air Force, succeeding Maung Maung Kyaw, who was forced to retire from the military.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-01-12 |title=Myanmar Air Force Chief Forced to Retire |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-air-force-chief-forced-to-retire.html |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=The Irrawaddy |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Treasury Sanctions Officials and Military-Affiliated Cronies in Burma Two Years after Military Coup |url=https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1233 |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=U.S. Department of the Treasury |language=en}}</ref> Prior to his promotion, he served as Maung Maung Kyaw's chief of staff.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Air force chief among those removed from posts as junta's reliance on planes and helicopters grows |url=https://myanmar-now.org/en/news/air-force-chief-among-those-removed-from-posts-as-juntas-reliance-on-planes-and-helicopters |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=Myanmar NOW |language=en}}</ref>

In the aftermath of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, the Burmese military has launched airstrikes against anti-regime resistance forces and civilians.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-11-08 |title=War-Crime Committing Myanmar Junta Air Chief Appointed to Lead ASEAN Body |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/war-crime-committing-myanmar-junta-air-chief-appointed-to-lead-asean-body.html |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=The Irrawaddy |language=en-US}}</ref> On 30 June 2022, under Htun Aung's command, a Burmese fighter jet violated Thai airspace after flying {{Convert|4-5|km|mi}} into Phop Phra district in Thailand's Tak province.<ref>{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2022-07-01 |title=Myanmar jet violates airspace |language=en |work=Bangkok Post |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2337298/myanmar-jet-violates-airspace |access-date=2023-02-19}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |date=2022-07-01 |title=Myanmar Regime Sorry for Junta Jet Intrusion into Thai Airspace |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-regime-sorry-for-junta-jet-intrusion-into-thai-airspace.html |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=The Irrawaddy |language=en-US}}</ref> Htun Aung subsequently issued an apology to this Thai counterpart, Napadej Dhupatemiya.<ref name=":0" /> The governments of the European Union, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom have sanctioned Htun Aung for human rights violations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=AUNG, Htun |url=https://www.opensanctions.org/entities/NK-NadKePJ7XhGES65NiGzdR6/ |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=Open Sanctions |language=en}}</ref>

== Personal life and controversies == Htun Aung has one son reportedly named Chan Nyein. His name has appeared in various reports related to financial assets connected to his father. According to some accounts, a number of properties and investments were registered under Chan Nyein’s name, a practice believed to have been used to bypass international sanctions placed on members of the military leadership.

In 2022, Chan Nyein was also involved in a widely discussed incident at a restaurant in the capital city. During a gathering with several associates, a dispute occurred between his group and another group of patrons. The confrontation reportedly escalated after a verbal exchange. Following the incident, the other group was detained by security forces on criminal charges. Critics and observers later questioned the circumstances of the arrests and suggested that political connections may have influenced the outcome.

The incident received public attention and was cited in discussions about the influence of military elites and their families within the country’s legal and political systems.

== References == {{reflist}}

Category:Living people Category:Burmese generals Category:Defence Services Academy alumni Category:1967 births Category:Defence ministers of Myanmar