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On September 24, 2026, Advocate General Tamara Ćapeta of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued an Opinion concerning the export by an Austrian aircraft manufacturer of aircraft and related items and technology to the Myanmar Air Force.
Justice For Myanmar welcomes the findings in this Opinion as another step towards preventing the Myanmar military from obtaining the means to continue committing international crimes with total impunity.
While the manufacturer is not named, Justice For Myanmar surmises that the case relates to Diamond Aircraft Industries, based on an investigation of Diamond Aircraft’s business in Myanmar and a freedom of information request to Austria’s economy ministry, which showed that only one aviation related dual-use export licence was granted for Myanmar between January 2018 and early 2024, on June 14, 2019.
Justice For Myanmar understands the Opinion concerns the export of Diamond Aircraft Industries' DART-450 aircraft and associated systems, components and technology to the Myanmar Air Force.
The DART-450 is a two-seat civilian aircraft designed for basic pilot training that the Myanmar military also intended to use for aerial reconnaissance, according to Justice For Myanmar sources with knowledge of the arrangement.
Diamond Aircraft Industries had exported aircraft and related equipment to Myanmar under the Austrian export authorisation granted in 2019 through a technical transfer arrangement that involved the manufacture and assembly of DART-450 aircraft at Shante air base in Meiktila.
According to the Court’s press release, in 2023, Diamond Aircraft Industries’ request to continue exports to Myanmar, even though it knew they were destined for use by the Myanmar Air Force, was blocked by Austria on grounds that these items constituted ‘dual-use items’, within the meaning of the EU Dual-Use Regulation.
This assessment was made by the Austrian authorities since the aircraft could be used for reconnaissance flights and to train military pilots and could therefore be used in connection with human rights violations.
Diamond Aircraft Industries challenged the denial of export permits before the Austrian Federal Administrative Court, which referred the case to the CJEU in August 2025.
At the centre of this referral was the question whether a civilian aircraft falls under the EU Dual-Use Regulation, which defines dual-use items as items “which can be used for both civil and military purposes”.
In her Opinion, CJEU Advocate General Ćapeta proposes a broad interpretation of the concept of a dual-use item and suggests that this determination should be assessed by reference to the physical and technical capabilities of the item at the time of export.
The Opinion distinguishes the assessment of what constitutes a dual-use item under Regulation (EU) 2021/821 from the subsequent export assessments.
The military capabilities of the end user, the situation in the destination country, the possibility of repurposing the item and the risk of diversion do not determine whether the item itself has a potential military use, according to the Opinion.
Instead, these factors can be relevant when determining whether an export requires authorisation.
For Diamond Aircraft Industries, the proposed interpretation means that the civilian nature of its DART-450 aircraft does not, by itself, exclude the aircraft from the EU’s dual-use framework.
CJEU Advocate General Ćapeta finds that its potential use to train military pilots can be sufficient for it to be considered capable of military use.
The Opinion does not itself determine whether Diamond Aircraft Industries can export the DART-450 to Myanmar and says that national authorities must explain, in context, why items are dual-use and why a prohibition raises security or human rights issues.
It is not binding on the CJEU, and the final judgment will come later.
The Austrian Federal Administrative Court will then apply the CJEU’s interpretation of EU law to the underlying dispute.
Justice For Myanmar has been continuously opposing these exports and published an investigation in 2023 on Diamond Aircraft Industries' deal with the Myanmar military.
Justice For Myanmar’s investigation also exposed how Diamond Aircraft Industries trained Myanmar Air Force personnel at its facilities in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, in 2019, with subsequent training also taking place at Shante air base in Myanmar.
In August 2023, Diamond Aircraft Industries’ Austro Engine also hosted Myanmar military personnel, according to photographic evidence seen by Justice For Myanmar.
Headquartered in Austria, Diamond Aircraft Industries was acquired by the Chinese company Wanfeng Aviation Industry in December 2017.
Diamond Aircraft Industries’ deal with the military was brokered by Myanmar company Miya Win International, which is sanctioned by the UK and Canada and subject to US export restrictions but has not been sanctioned by the EU.
Justice For Myanmar continues to demand the EU sanction Miya Win International and its owners, directors and associated companies to block it from doing business with companies in member states.
It is deplorable that Diamond Aircraft Industries is trying to resume its business with the Myanmar military, which would support the military’s ongoing indiscriminate airstrikes and shelling against civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Justice For Myanmar demands that Diamond Aircraft Industries immediately end any collaboration with Miya Win International, the Myanmar military junta and their associates, and halt any agreed consignments of additional hardware or related goods to Myanmar.
Not doing so potentially exposes Diamond Aircraft Industries to liability for aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Justice For Myanmar calls on all governments to block the supply of arms, dual-use goods and aviation fuel to the Myanmar junta and stop its ability to continue waging a campaign of terror against the people.
Justice For Myanmar spokesperson Yadanar Maung says: "We welcome CJEU Advocate General Ćapeta’s Opinion that dual-use items under the EU Dual-Use Regulation should be interpreted broadly.
"The Opinion confirms what is already common sense: that aircraft that can be used to train military pilots have military use. Their export to the Myanmar military, which took place after the military's genocide against the Rohingya, should never have been allowed.
"This is the first time the CJEU will address the definition of dual-use items under EU law. By adopting the Opinion, the Court could set an important binding precedent for future export licences across the EU."
More information:
Read more about the CJEU case here
Read Justice For Myanmar’s 2023 report into Diamond Aircraft Industries’ business with the Myanmar military here
