In order to survey the compound where Usama bin Laden was hiding, the CIA used a new type of stealth drone to fly dozens of missions into Pakistani airspace undetected, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The unmanned planes conducted flights over the compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan for months before the Navy SEALs raid on May 2 that killed the Al Qaeda leader, The Post said, adding that they captured high-resolution video necessary to plan the mission.

The ability to evade radar detection and operate at high altitudes allowed the stealth drones – a model known as the RQ-170 Sentinel -- to travel beyond the normal limits that Pakistan has imposed on other U.S. drones, the paper reported.

A former U.S. official familiar with the operation told The Post that the agency “needed to see more about what was going on” than other surveillance methods allowed. Highly advanced aircraft were just one of many methods used, but their role was made necessary by the location of bin Laden’s compound – near military and nuclear sites with systems that could have detected Predator drones or other non-stealth aircraft.

The use of U.S. drones in Pakistan was already a tense subject between the two countries even before the bin Laden raid.

The U.S. refuses to publicly acknowledge the covert CIA drone program in Pakistan, but officials have said privately that the strikes have killed many senior Al Qaeda and Taliban commanders.

U.S. officials believe Pakistani intelligence continues to support militants who attack U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and actively undermine U.S. intelligence operations to go after Al Qaeda inside Pakistan. The level of distrust is such that keeping Pakistan in the dark was a major factor in planning the raid.

Pakistani officials regularly condemn drone attacks as violations of the country's sovereignty. But many are believed to privately support the program, and some of the drones are suspected of taking off from inside Pakistan.

Continued drone attacks in the weeks following bin Laden’s death are evidence that the U.S. is not letting up on cross-border drone strikes into Pakistan despite complaints that the U.S. violated its sovereignty by killing bin Laden on their soil.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/05/18/report-cia-used-stealth-drones-monitor-bin-ladens-compound-pakistan/

Those things look awesome. It's funny they have denied their existance until this event.

Obama is saying way to much. He shouldn't have said we got ANY information from the hide out or discuss classified stuff with the Press or even give the unit up that got Bin Laden, putting them ALL and their families in danger.

And people wonder how other countries are getting info about us and our military..they don't need spies..just watch the news..dumb shmucks

Yup, to bad they have an inexperienced dumb schmuck in the White House who does't know how to keep his mouth shut or his Vice Presidents. Atleast Reagan, Bush, Clinton and Bush knew how to keep their mouth shut.

huh... they have using the stealth drones for a few years now... i think it was the new stealth helicopters that was a bigger issue, since one was shot down...

once again (think I'm just going to make a cut and paste that says this)

when we elect a prez, it is important to remember that he/she will be COMMANDER AND CHIEF OF THE MILITARY - not an often discussed function but one of the more important where mistakes can't happen - like the type of disclosures mentioned here

but Pakistan? sovereignty? it's a war for heaven's sake....

thats why i have always said, people that have not been in the military should not be president...obama should pick an admiral or general, and let them run the military, answering to obama...

I dunno, this Sentinel has been pretty secret. There is only one known photograph of it that was taken by a reporter in Afganistan and it's not a clear shot.

The Government has barely acknowledged it's existance and is supposed to be one of the most classified aircraft we are using over there. It's based out of the Tonopah Test Range(Inside Area 51).

I think it's funny that we have been flying spy missions for years undetected over their country, then we launch a military attack with multiple aircraft and soldiers for almost an hour right outside their capitol and make it out without them knowing we were there until we were back in Afganistan.

They got caught with their pants down and look like a joke to the international community. If I were the President there I would be cleaning house with their Military and ISI leaders.

Not to mention I bet India got a good laugh out of it.

That's what he tried to do with Gates, Mullen, Patraeus and McCrystal. The problem is the guy has a HUGE ego and wont listen to the people with experience. It has to be his way, he thinks he knows all.