Just over a month after the first test, the A-10C is now flying in the Middle East with the new Probe Refueling Adapter which allows it to refuel from the HC-130J with the probe and drogue system.
The U.S. Air Force has released the first photos showing the A-10C Thunderbolt II attack jet using the Probe Refueling Adapter in the Middle East to refuel from an HC-130J Combat King II. The system was first tested in early April to give the A-10 a new probe and drogue air refueling capability and significantly expand its refueling options.
The close air support aircraft has been so far dependent on the KC-135 Stratotanker, as it is not yet cleared to refuel from the newer KC-46 Pegasus. An urgent combatant command requirement thus emerged to address operational availability of aerial refueling in theater, with the goal of refueling the A-10 from C-130-based tankers.
The new photos, released on May 21, 2026, show A-10s refueling from an HC-130J in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility on May 9, 2026. The Warthogs are assigned to the 107th Fighter Squadron from Selfridge ANGB, Michigan, which arrived in the Middle East in early April.
The photos have been released just a day after a video showing the first use of the new probe by the A-10s from Moody Air Force Base, Georgia. The refueling, conducted on May 19, similarly used an HC-130J as tanker.
Notably, the A-10s photographed in the Middle East are also equipped with the Angry Kitten electronic warfare pod. The pod, which saw the first combat use during Operation Epic Fury aboard the F-16s flying Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) missions, was previously tested on the A-10 but never publicly seen in an operational setting abroad.
Probe Refueling Adapter
One of the distinguishing traits of the A-10C is its air refueling receptable on the nose, just in front of the cockpit, where the tanker’s operator plugs the flying boom. However, with KC-10 tankers retired and KC-46 certification pending, A-10s remained dependent on KC-135s for aerial refueling, severely restraining the planning of missions.
Thus, an urgent combatant command requirement aimed to address operational availability of aerial refueling in theater with the use of C-130-based tankers. In a short timeframe, a Probe Refueling Adapter was designed and tested for the first time on Apr. 2, 2026.
As it can be seen in the photos, the adapter fits into the air refueling receptacle on the nose of the A-10. Once installed, this converts the aircraft from its standard boom refueling configuration to a probe and drogue system.
The Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center (AATC) says the probe adapter is a field-configurable solution, and thus can be installed by operational flight line personnel “in a matter of hours,” without having to resort to depot facilities. This allows “aircraft to be reconfigured between boom and probe refueling capability based on mission requirements,” explains the statement.
The difficulties of the testing with the KC-46 were reportedly related to the boom, and specifically an actuator inside the boom which prevents the A-10C to be refueled also because of its low speed. The A-10 is notoriously slower than other fighter jets currently in service with the U.S. Air Force, with its maximum speed listed as 420 miles per hour (Mach 0.56), or 365 knots at sea level.
Normally, fighter jets in U.S. service refuel at around 300 knots, while the A-10C reportedly refuels at around 200 knots. This obviously forces the KC-46 to fly at a very low speed will possibly being still at its maximum weight at the start of a refueling mission, while a C-130-based tanker can fly much easily at lower speeds and altitudes.
Obviously, a C-130 tanker with a flying boom refueling system does not exist, while multiple C-130 variants are capable of air refueling with the probe and drogue system and they are already in service. Considering that the new probe in installed on top of the existing air refueling port, it is possible that the training required to pilots, before being cleared to use the new refueling system, will be short.
Angry Kitten pod
The Angry Kitten electronic warfare pod, initially born as a training pod derived from the AN/ALQ-167, has evolved as a modular DFRM-based electronic warfare pod and is now at its first combat employment. The system was first spotted on the South Carolina Air National Guard’s F-16s flying towards the Middle East shortly before the beginning of Operation Epic Fury.
The pod was initially designed for use on the F-16, stemming from research by the Georgia Tech Research Institute dating back to 2013 that intended to produce a threat simulation pod for training use. The goal was to offer a ‘cognitive EW’ capability that can independently assess opposing technology and choose a specific response tailored to that threat, as well as rapidly adapt when it encounters unfamiliar foes.
Since then, it has evolved into a potential front-line asset, which was tested on the A-10 Thunderbolt II, the MQ-9 Reaper, the F/A-18 Hornet and C-130 Hercules. It now appears that the pod has indeed found its way into the front-lines.
“At the core of that technology is Angry Kitten’s Technique Description Language architecture,” says the U.S. Navy in a recent feature article. “Georgia Tech designed TDL as a hybrid that pairs dedicated hardware modules for speed and bandwidth with software for complex decision-making.”
The pod is also said to be quickly reprogrammable with updates pushed in real-time, without sending it back to the contractor. The approach enables rapid optimization of jamming against threat systems with reduced costs and development times.
