Burma became independent on 4 January 1948, having previously been a British crown colony. The country had suffered greatly during the Japanese occupation between 1942 and 1945. However, several armed resistance groups challenged the Burmese regime. Various ethnic, political and religious groups did not support the Bamar majority, and, as a result, internal strife erupted almost immediately. In early 1949, almost the entire country was controlled by resistance groups, but by the early 1950s, government forces had regained much territory.

With the assistance of an RAF Mission, the Union of Burma Air Force (UBAF) was established on 15 December 1947. The first task of the RAF Mission aimed at organizing and training the UBAF, with flight training being initiated at Meiktila. The main operational air base was established at Mingaladon near the capitol of Rangoon. The first aircraft were DH 82A Tiger Moths, Auster AOP Vs and Airspeed Oxfords. Both the Austers and the Oxfords, later supplemented by a batch of Consuls, were put to operational use against the rebel groups, with the Oxfords being armed with both with light machine guns, rockets and small bombs. Three Supermarine Spitfire Mk XVIIIes transferred from RAF SEA Command formed a fighter-bomber flight at Mingaladon. Although the UBAF suffered heavy losses during the late 1940s and early 1950s, air power played a major role in regaining territory from the rebels. Apart from indigenous rebel groups, the situation was further complicated in 1949/1950, when Nationalist Chinese KMT units sought refuge in northern Burma. Although most of the KMT troops were repatriated to Taiwan by the CIA airline CAT in 1951/52, some units remained until 1961.

Between 1952 and 1955, Burma received 20 de-navalised Seafire Mk XVs and 29 former Israeli Spitfire Mk IXs. Both the Seafires and Spitfires were heavily utilized as ground support aircraft. In 1957/58, they were supplemented and eventually replaced by a batch of 18 Sea Fury F.B.11s and three T.20s. The first of an eventual total of 40 Percival Provost Mk T.53s also arrived during the late 1950s. Apart from its primary use as a basic training aircraft, most Provosts were armed with both light machine guns and light ordnance. The Provost would prove itself as a real workhorse of the UBAF, with the last finally being withdrawn during the late 1970s.

Although most operational activity concerned flying missions against indigenous rebel groups, the remnants of the KMT also received their fair share of attention from the UBAF. During the late 1950s, the Chinese Nationalist Air Force (CNAF), flew several missions in support of the KMT units remaining in Burma. On one of these missions, on 15 February 1961, an unarmed CNAF P4Y-2 Privateer (or a B-24 Liberator, available sources disagree on the type of aircraft), was shot down by a UBAF Hawker Sea Fury. The Sea Fury was flown by Noel Peters, a former RAF pilot. He fatally crashed in Thailand near the town of Mae Sai to unknown causes shortly after downing the CNAF transport aircraft. To this day, this constitutes the UBAFs sole air-to-air victory.

From its establishment until the late 1950s, almost all of the UBAF aircraft were of British origin. One Russian aircraft, an Ilyushin Il-14 Crate was delivered to Burma for VIP use on 13 January 1956, while the first American aircraft arrived in 1957, when six Beech D18S light transports and ten Cessna 180D light utility aircraft being delivered. The first of an eventual 13 Kawasaki-built Bell 47Gs began to arrive the following year, providing the UBAF with its first experience with helicopters. Despite the fact that the USA and CIA was supporting the KMT units in northern Burma, relations between Burma and the USA didn't suffer. When general Ne Win seized power in a Coup d'Etat in 1962, he began a socialist experiment and severed almost all ties with the outside world. However, American support for the new regime continued, with several new types of US-built aircraft being introduced into UBAF service, including Vertol V.44A and Kaman HH-43B Huskies, both types being delivered around 1963-1964. The remaining Hawker Sea Furies were finally withdrawn around 1967, and replaced with Lockheed AT-33A close support aircraft. Although as many as 29 AT-33As may have been delivered to the UBAF, the type was not popular. Apart from being considered as difficult to maintain, the AT-33A was not entirely suitable to the kind of COIN operations that the UBAF had been flying since 1948. A US offer in 1968 for a dozen N.A. F.86F Sabres was rejected.

During the 1970s, most of the remaining British-designed aircraft had been withdrawn from use, with the UBAFs last operational DH 115 Vampire being shot down in early 1978. American influence remained strong, with both 12 Cessna T-37C basic jet trainers and 18 Bell 205A-1 helicopters entering service. Most of the Bell 205s were used on anti-drugs operations in northern Burma. The last Douglas C-47s were replaced in 1978 by several Fairchild-Hiller FH-227s, which were provided free of charge by the US Department of Defense. All FH-227s were converted before delivery with Large Cargo Doors.

With the delivery of 20 SIAI SF.260WBs from Italy in 1976, and 16 Pilatus PC-7s from Switzerland in 1979-1980, the UBAF tried to diversify its aircraft purchases. Although the PC-7s arrived in Burma unarmed, they were converted locally to carry armament. With both Pilatus PC-7s and PC-9s being used for ground support and light attack duties, their sale to Burma raised controversy both in Switzerland and in Canada (where the PT-6 turboprop engine was built) due to human rights issues.

Following severe civil unrest in 1988, when thousands of civilians were killed by government forces, most nations imposed an embargo on weapons sales to Burma. As this embargo also concerned fuel, the UBAF found it increasingly difficult in obtaining avgas for its piston-engined aircraft and helicopters. As a result, the remaining Kawasaki-Bell 47Gs, DHC-1 Chipmunks, DHC-3 Otters, SIAI SF.260WBs were withdrawn from use and sold to civilian operators in Canada, Sweden and the USA. The new military regime was named State Law and Order Restoration Council, better known as SLORC. In 1989, the country changed its name from Burma to Myanmar (or, more correctly, Mrnma Prăn), with the capitol Rangoon becoming known as Yangon. As a consequence, the UBAF changed its name into the Myanmar Air Force (MAF).

From the early 1990s, most aircraft supplied to the MAF have been of Chinese manufacture. Included among these are Chengdu F-7Ms (a reverse-engineered MiG-21F-13), NAMC A-5Ms (an improved, dedicated ground attack aircraft based on the MiG-19) and Yunshuji Y-8Ds (licence-built Antonov An-12s). Although substantial quantities of Chinese aircraft have been received by the MAF, operations have suffered due to poor manufacturing quality, lack of spares and poor training. Also, the Chinese advisors attached to the MAF have a poor reputation, being considered both as arrogant and lacking in knowledge in aviation matters.

Several border incidents with neighbouring Thailand have shown the MAF as being both lacking in force and training. Even though some of the F-7Ms have received avionics and structural upgrades by Israeli companies, their lack of capacity against the RTAFs GD F-16s are all too apparent. In 2002, the first of an eventual 10 MiG-29 Fulcrums arrived in Myanmar. Although these MiG-29 Fulcrum-As were built during the early 1990s against an Iraqi order, they constitute the most modern and up-to-date aircraft of the MAF. It is unclear if the MAF will obtain further MiG-29s to replace their F-7s. It would appear that most of the MAF aircraft inventory is non-operational or grounded due to lack of spares and maintenance. It is uncertain if this situation will change in the near future. With Myanmar being one of the world's poorest countries, and with a terrible record on human rights violations, the country is desperately trying to interest foreign companies to invest in Myanmar. Whether any future foreign investments and political pressure will make Myanmar more democratic is unclear. The MAF remains a force in decline, and there are no signs of this changing in the near future.

Jan Forsgren