“We had minimal hopes for what we could do for larger body aircraft, but it’s showing that we actually have good effects,” remarked electronic warfare engineer Chris Culver of the surprise success with testing the Angry Kitten electronic warfare (EW) pod on the C-130 Hercules. The same logic is why the new use of a system developed for high-g, highly agile fighter aircraft like the F-16 is now demonstrating its worth in less agile, more air-focused systems that will not be burdened with a heavy self-defense load.
The Georgia Tech Research Institute’s Angry Kitten pod is an electronic warfare version. While traditional systems react to predicted threats on pre-defined responses, this pod employs machine learning to generate a “cognitive EW” capability. It can automatically detect and classify new but as yet unknown enemy radar signatures, neutralize sophisticated threats, and dynamically change jamming or spoofing tactics. Such flexibility is particularly valuable for aircraft in contested airspace, such as CSAR missions, with unprogrammed and changing electronic threats.
Early evaluations of the F-16 revealed the effectiveness of the pod in combating sophisticated electronic warfare, but application against larger aircraft such as the C-130 Hercules added new capability. The larger radar cross-section of the C-130 is easier to see and target than with small aircraft, but the Angry Kitten pod has proven exceptionally effective in combatting such vulnerability. The C-130 engineers have also recently modified in-flight jamming methods while testing via real-time feed from range control. Culver explained, “They are making changes real time to the techniques and pushing updates to the pod, seeing the change in real-time.” That is quite different from some of the initial tests with the F-16, who simply used pre loaded mission data files.
Special Airborne Mission Installation and Response (SABIR) arm mount, Airdyne module installation, was installed to provide pod mounting on the C-130. Door mounting on the paratroop door, SABIR arm places the receiver and transmitter elements of the pod in their optimal position during flight with minimal airframe redesign. The mission illustrates that Angry Kitten equipment can be flexible to accommodate many varying aircraft configurations.
Angry Kitten’s demonstration created interest as well as interest created by the C-130. The MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle system is also considered, and KC-46 and KC-135 tanker squadrons are interested following demo at the Air Reserve Components Weapons and Tactics Conference (ARCWEPTAC). The tankers long disadvantaged in mission and size profiles would be greatly assisted by Angry Kitten’s ability to jam the enemy force’s radar and provide survivability in combat operations.
Over the course of the next couple of years, the Angry Kitten system matures into a second-generation incarnation more commonly called “Angry Kitten Inc 2 Block 2” or the Advanced Test and Training Capability (ATTACK) pod. The second-generation system is not only designing its virtual do over on the drafting board from analog receivers to digital receivers for better sensitivity and frequency agility. Culver noted, “We’re taking a bunch of separate line replaceable units within the pod and smashing them together into one LRU, saving more real estate inside the pod to make room for new capabilities.” This consolidation not only streamlines the pod’s internal architecture but also creates space for future upgrades, ensuring its relevance in an ever-changing battlefield.
The implications of these advancements extend beyond individual aircraft. With such support infrastructures as ISR infrastructures and tankers containing most advanced EW assets, the US Air Force can make its overall operating ruggedness more productive. When the threat is deployment of long range air to air missiles or the next generation of radars, the vehicles themselves in such threats are at risk of putting themselves in harm’s way. The addition of modules like Angry Kitten provides an active defense system where flight of such drones can be driven closer to the frontline without jeopardizing security.
Second, the machine learning-based adaptability of Angry Kitten pod is also part of the larger movement of integrating artificial intelligence in the military. With war now more of a battle for dominance of the electromagnetic spectrum, such technology as Angry Kitten demonstrates how artificial intelligence can be applied to enable decision and effectiveness in war. How it can learn to counter non conventional threats at high speed is a worthwhile feature in electronic warfare, where risk is high and margin for error minute. While the program first started in 2013 as a simulation platform to mimic threats, the fact that it is now being deployed as an operating front-line unit demonstrates the military’s ability to adapt to new technologies. The pod has also been observed towed behind U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornets, and as such, it is among the most versatile across the different branches of the military.
Angry Kitten promise never is never lacking by the U.S. Air Force, its fighting capability on large aircraft such as C-130 Hercules pushing the system and its flexibility to its limits. From combat air space survivability advantage to door ajar to future EW capability, Angry Kitten pod is light years ahead of electronic warfare capability. To war hawks and warriors, its leapfrog from theory to war-fighting reality is a whizzical foretaste of future combat aviation.
Its testing on flight in large aircraft like the C-130 Hercules and MQ-9 Reaper unmanned surveillance drones showcases its versatility. Similarly, its in flight real time electronic warfare technique software updates show its intelligence. And finally, ATTACK pod development shows encouraging frequency agility and sensitivity gains.
