Did a top secret drone used to track Bin Laden take part in Maduro’s capture?
After completing a historic mission and capturing Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, locals near a Puerto Rican air base spotted what appeared to be a rare Air Force drone.
The RQ-170 Sentinel drone was captured landing at sunrise after the January 3 raid, which saw US forces take Maduro and begin his lengthy journey towards New York.
The secret drones have been in service for almost two decades, but their existence was only made known in 2009 after they were used in Afghanistan.
There are only about 20 drones in service, and the high-tech aeroplanes were famously used to gather intelligence before the killing of Osama Bin Laden.
Before the SEAL team famously entered the Abbottabad compound where Bin Laden had been hiding, they used the drone dozens of times to monitor it and know the best time to enter.
The unmanned aircraft, made by defence giant Lockheed Martin, helps provide surveillance during missions.
The RQ-170 was also used in Afghanistan’s Kandahar Airfield, gaining the nickname ‘the Beast of Kandahar’ – even though the plane flies silently.
In 2011, however, one mission using the RQ-170 didn’t go well, landing in Iran rather than Kandahar, and being seized by the Iranians.
It’s not known why the aircraft malfunctioned, but initial speculation showed that the GPS signal could have been jammed, causing the plane to land far away from its home base.
The New York Times previously reported that stealth drones flying above Caracas helped the CIA gather vital information about Maduro’s movements before taking him to the US.
It’s still not confirmed that the RQ-170 was used in the Caracas mission, but if it was, it’s a rare sighting after taking part in a dangerous mission.
What other aircraft were used in Venezuela?
More than 150 US aircraft, including bombers, fighter jets and surveillance planes, were used the night Maduro was captured.
Locals also reported that helicopters were flying over Caracas,but it’s unclear if these were American or Venezuelan.
Airbases, airfields and ports were bombed by American planes in Venezuela.
It wasn’t just planes involved in the mission, however – Trump bragged about how the US was behind the power cut which happened shortly before the mission began.
‘The lights of Caracas were largely turned off due to a certain expertise that we have. It was dark, and it was deadly,’ he told reporters.
Maduro and his wife were in their home at the Fort Tiuana military installation in Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, ruling party leader Nahum Fernandez said.
Trump confirmed the Venezuelan leader and his wife were flown out of the country, which the US president added ‘was done in conjunction with US Law Enforcement’.
The operation was carried out by the US military’s elite special forces known as Delta Force, which has previously carried out some top-secret operations.