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India-Pakistan
CIA flew stealth drones into Pakistan to monitor bin Laden house
2011-05-18
The CIA employed sophisticated new stealth drone aircraft to fly dozens of secret missions deep into Pakistani airspace and monitor the compound where Osama bin Laden was killed, current and former U.S. officials said.

Using unmanned planes designed to evade radar detection and operate at high altitudes, the agency conducted clandestine flights over the compound for months before the May 2 assault in an effort to capture high-resolution video that satellites could not provide.

The aircraft allowed the CIA to glide undetected beyond the boundaries that Pakistan has long imposed on other U.S. drones, including the Predators and Reapers that routinely carry out strikes against militants near the border with Afghanistan.

The agency turned to the new stealth aircraft “because they needed to see more about what was going on” than other surveillance platforms allowed, said a former U.S. official familiar with the details of the operation. “It’s not like you can just park a Predator overhead — the Pakistanis would know,” added the former official, who, like others interviewed, spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing the sensitivity of the program.

The monitoring effort also involved satellites, eavesdropping equipment and CIA operatives based at a safe house in Abbottabad, the city where bin Laden was found. The agency declined to comment for this article.
Posted by:tipper

#13  Don't forget the Replicants being produced down in Gitmo to replicate detainees.

oops - I probably shouldn't have mentioned that. Please disregard.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2011-05-18 23:44  

#12  ION NOT-BLADERUNNER, TOPIX/PEOPLE'S DAILY FORUM > US DRONES: COMING TO AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER NEAR CHINA?

and

* SAME > [UCLASS Project]UCAVS ON AICRAFT CARRIERS BY 2018, SAYS USN CHIEF [CNO ADM. Gary Roughead].

* SAME > NEW UAV ROLE IN USDOD 30-YEAR AIR PLAN [Year 2040], UAVS numbers to steadily expand oer time ala replacement of LR manned recce, fighter-strike aircraft, etc. for all of the US Armed Forces, e.g. USAF E-3 AWACS + RC-135 RIVET JOINTS aircrafts.

Posted by: JosephMendiola   2011-05-18 23:19  

#11  i kinda thought so because satellite tech is burdened by night, shadows, clouds and angles. for those who are unaware, assault teams plan for error correction. one report said that a risk assessment on landing within the walls, found that a chopper created up-draft could cause an accident. hence the deployment of explosives for destroying technology that could be reverse-engineered. also, explosives had to be used on one heavily reinforced inner door. couldn't see that on satellite.
Posted by: Tholumble Panda4671   2011-05-18 16:11  

#10  Nearly as important as the spy squirrels; large enough to hold the tech, small enough to not be noticed, solves problems.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2011-05-18 15:33  

#9  Yes, EC, 'The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded.'
Posted by: Procopius2k   2011-05-18 12:18  

#8  Just don't let on about the other secret tech we have ok?
Posted by: Haliburton Secret Cloaking Device Division   2011-05-18 11:33  

#7  These are not the drones you are looking for
Posted by: European Conservative   2011-05-18 11:21  

#6  Just make sure your underwear is clean and your be ok.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2011-05-18 11:20  

#5  We got stealth drones flyin' all over the world, peeking into everything. None of our enemies are safe, anywhere.

But don't tell nobody, okay? They're secret.
Posted by: Fred   2011-05-18 11:09  

#4  The agency turned to the new stealth aircraft "because they needed to see more about what was going on" than other surveillance platforms allowed

Yep, and with thermal-imaging and backscatter tech and all sorts of interesting gadjets that allow us to watch Dinnerjacket shower and where Daffy sleeps and how many Paleos can cram into ambulances!!!! We're coming for you... ;)
Posted by: Lumpy Elmoluck5091   2011-05-18 08:31  

#3  Psyops, I think. Don't we have satellites that can overwatch without detection as described in this piece? I believe we do. But why bring that up when you can create stories about mysterious "stealth DRONES" (scary!).
Posted by: Scooter McGruder   2011-05-18 07:33  

#2  So did the drones reveal any interesting faces coming to visit? Soldiers? Generals? Jane Fonda? John Kerry?
Posted by: Bobby   2011-05-18 05:57  

#1  More secrets revealed. The NY Slimes must be envious! Scooped by the WaPo!
Posted by: Bobby   2011-05-18 05:42  

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