Damaged U.S. Chinook threatened Caracas raid that captured Venezuela’s Maduro

During an early-hours raid on President Nicolás Maduro’s fortified compound in Caracas, a damaged U.S. MH-47 Chinook was hit but remained flyable as Army commandos completed the operation to seize Mr. Maduro and his wife. Helicopters carrying dozens of Delta Force commandos skimmed about 100 feet above the sea and then over Caracas after a U.S.

cyberattack darkened the city and radar-evading fighter jets struck air defenses. Initially undetected, the aircraft came under fire as they approached; the first helicopter, the Chinook, was hit and its flight leader — who planned the mission and was piloting — was struck three times in the leg, current and former U.S.

officials said. The operation, called Absolute Resolve, involved more than 150 aircraft launched from 20 different land and sea bases in the region. By 2:01 a.m. in Caracas, more than 80 Army commandos had exited the helicopters and, after an intense firefight with Mr. Maduro’s Cuban security detail, forced open a door to his bedroom and seized him and his wife as they tried to reach a steel-reinforced room.

The flight leader and one other wounded soldier are recovering in Texas, five other service members were treated and released, and the Chinook returned to the amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima. Venezuelan and Cuban officials said about 40 Venezuelans and 32 Cubans were killed.

Key Topics

World, Nicolás Maduro, Absolute Resolve, Caracas, Delta Force, Iwo Jima