American secret stealth drones RQ-170 Sentinel were involved in Resolute Determination Operation, which resulted in kidnapping of Venezuela's president and his wife
The Air Force deployed at least one, and possibly several, such unmanned aerial vehicles this is indeed a rather rare case of public appearance of this weapon.
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Although, as The War Zone emphasizes, it's not at all surprising that American military used RQ-170 for the Venezuela operation because this is precisely what this drone was created for: conducting reconnaissance and surveillance of extremely important targets deep in enemy territory.
Defense Express reminds that previously the U.S. also practiced interaction of these stealth drones with fighters and bombers as an example, we can mention exercises in August 2020 where, besides RQ-170, F-35A Joint Strike Fighters, F-22 Raptors, F-15E Strike Eagles, B-2A Spirit bombers, and EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft were also involved.
Although RQ-170 data is quite classified, this unmanned aerial vehicle has been in service for over a decade and a half (or possibly longer, as this refers to when the U.S first acknowledged its existence). It's a development of defense giant Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works division.
It's likely equipped with active electronically scanned radar, can detect ground targets in motion, and may have signals intelligence complexes, etc.
By the way, it is possible that at one time RQ-170s could have hunted russians in Crimea as of April 2023, at least nine combat sorties from February 2022 were reported.
Defense Express previously reported on which russian weapons the U.S. will gain access to after regime overthrow in Venezuela and which ones Caracas will be deprived of.
Read more: What Forces U.S. Deployed for Operation Against Venezuela
