The test is aimed at expanding the refueling envelope of the A400M to refuel a wide variety of NATO aircraft, and follows the first ever refueling of a V-22 in early 2025.
A German Air Force (Luftwaffe) A400M successfully refueled for the first time a U.S. Air Force CV-22B Osprey, operated by the AFSOC (Air Force Special Operations Command), on Mar. 19, 2025, announced the Luftwaffe on Mar. 22. Earlier this year, on Jan. 13, Airbus Defence announced that a German A400M refueled a U.S. Navy V-22 Osprey. Both flights were aimed towards a capability expansion of the A400M, with the goal to widen its refueling envelope with NATO aircraft.
Also, Germany will soon send one aircraft to the United States to test its air refueling capability with a MH-47G Chinook. The Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces) mentioned this as part of their activities in preparation for operating and refueling their own CH-47F Block II SR AAR (Standard Range – Air-to-Air Refuelling), as Germany is expected to receive 60 of these helicopters by Oct. 2032.
The A400M in general is undergoing a series of flight envelope expansions, with the French Air and Space Force certifying the aircraft on icy runways in Canada and Greenland, driven by Allied interoperability needs. The same imperative was stated by the Luftwaffe with the current tests.
In German service, the A400M has flown for over ten years and, by Nov. 2024, logged 51,000 flight hours, with 25,000 of them flown since Jan. 2022. The Bundeswehr received its first A400M on Dec. 18, 2014, which was delivered a day later to the 62nd Air Transport Wing (LTG 62) in Wunstorf. As of Dec. 2024, Germany is operating 48 out of 53 A400Ms ordered, with nearly all of them based at Wunstorf.
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January 2025 U.S. Navy V-22B Osprey refueling
Neither the Luftwaffe, the German Armed Forces, nor the U.S. Navy released any information on the tests with the U.S. Navy V-22B Osprey in January.
Details of that test were limited to the X post by Airbus Defence, which said the, “A400M successfully gave fuel to a @USNavy V-22 Osprey during a flight test campaign conducted by @Team_Luftwaffe.” This means an unidentified number of dockings must have taken place between the V-22B Osprey, although the specific variant used is not known, and the A400M.
“This further expands the German A400M’s role as a tanker and marks a step towards increasing interoperability with NATO partners,” Airbus added. As we reported regarding the expansion of the refueling envelope of the U.S. Navy’s KC-130T, which involved testing the impact of the wake from its new propellers on the refueling hose and drogue-and-chute system, U.S. and German crews must have had a similar effort here.
New receiver unlocked ✅
The #A400M successfully gave fuel to a @USNavy V-22 Osprey during a flight test campaign conducted by @Team_Luftwaffe.
This further expands the German A400M’s role as a tanker and marks a step towards increasing interoperability with #NATO partners. pic.twitter.com/3kisGZFfew
— Airbus Defence (@AirbusDefence) January 13, 2025
Since the A400M is faster than the Osprey, it would need to fly at a reduced speed, while the tilt-rotor’s pilots would have to operate at high speeds, requiring precise maneuvering. The crew might also have to introduce distinct procedures for employing the refueling hose, customized for the Osprey’s flight characteristics.
March 2025 Osprey refuelling
In the latest Mar. 19 test over the North Sea with the AFSOC’s CV-22B Osprey, the Luftwaffe said in an Instagram post on Mar. 22, 2025: “On Wednesday, we refueled a CV-22 Osprey of the US Air Force for the first time in mid-air with our A400M. Together with our allies, we were on the North Sea coast – a strong sign of our cooperation! We look forward to further exercises.”
The service added that the CV-22B Osprey was operated by the AFSOC’s 352nd Special Operations Wing (SOW), based at RAF Mildenhall, UK, under the U.S. EUCOM (European Command).
On its WhatsApp channel “TeamLuftwaffe”, a machine-translated post from the service said: “First refueling of a CV-22 Osprey by our A400M! For the first time, our A400M refueled a CV-22 Osprey of the US Air Force in mid-air. We were deployed alongside our allies along the North Sea coast – a strong demonstration of our close cooperation! Such exercises strengthen our operational capability and partnership. We look forward to further joint training exercises!”
The images released show from various angles the A400M refueling the CV-22B Osprey, with the hose extended and connected with the latter’s refueling probe. A shot from the refueling system’s camera on the flight engineer’s console in the cockpit showed the hose just above the Osprey, shortly before connecting.
A400M refueling capability
The A400M uses an additional centerline HDU (Hose and Drum Unit) system, which includes a protrusion under the rear cargo ramp doors and tanks inside the cargo hold, along with underwing pods. This enables the A400M to refuel a large variety of aircraft, including other A400Ms and even C-130s. Its basic fuel capacity of 63,500 litres increases with the two extra cargo hold tanks of the HDU, which carry 7,200 litres each and can transfer fuel at a rate of 2,000 litres (600 US gallons) per minute.
The HDU is an additional kit that can be rapidly installed, transforming the A400M into a dedicated tanker with the three-point refueling system. The U.S. Navy and the USAF Ospreys, as seen in the images, were refueled using the centerline HDU unit.
The A400M program had initially seen issues with the inability to refuel helicopters, beside dropping paratroopers from the side fuselage doors. In Sep. 2019, Airbus and the French Directorate General of Armament (DGA) conducted the first successful helicopter mid-air refueling test using an H225M Caracal.
Then, on Jan. 10, 2024, as a part of an effort “to clear the entire envelope for all NATO allies” operating the A400M Atlas, a German aircraft refueled an F/A-18F Super Hornet, assigned to the Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-23), at NAS (Naval Air Station) Patuxent River, Maryland. The A400M used only its underwing pods for the flight.
This was followed by another envelope expansion flight at NAS Patuxent River on Aug. 28, 2024, this time with an E/A-18G Growler and an F/A-18F Super Hornet from VX-23 which received in-flight refueling from the Luftwaffe A400M’s HDU and underwing pods, respectively.
Luftwaffe A400Ms headed to US to train on Chinooks
In a separate press release on Mar. 7, 2025, about the importance and benefits of Germany’s expected CH-47F Block II SR AAR helicopters, the Bundeswehr said that a part of the effort was to certify its A400Ms to refuel the tandem-rotor aircraft. “Air -to-air refueling is expected to begin this year in the USA with a German A400M and an American Chinook MH-47G. Tests with the KC-130J transport aircraft have already been successfully completed,” said the statement.
To be built at the Boeing plant in Philadelphia, the first Chinook is scheduled to arrive in Germany in Oct. 2027, and the last of the 60 aircraft in Oct. 2032. This also aligns with the retirement of Germany’s last CH-53K King Stallions, which are expected to reach the end of their service life in the 2030s.
The release added that, in order to commence operations with the Chinook immediately after its arrival, training for technicians, loadmasters and pilots has already begun in the United States and the Netherlands, “while another exchange with Great Britain will begin in summer 2025.”
