WASHINGTON - The secret mission planners to catch Osama bin Laden in Pakistan knew it was a one shot, and almost went terribly wrong.
U.S. deliberately concealed the operation in Pakistan, and predicted that the national outrage over the violation of Pakistani sovereignty, would make it impossible to retry if the raid on suspected Bin Laden stronghold was dry.
Once the attackers arrived at their destination, things began to go wrong almost immediately, officials informed about the operation, he said.
Adding new details on exclusive account of the assault on the hideout of Bin Laden, officials described how the attackers left a strong SEAL helicopter wreck right outside the door of Bin Laden, ruining the plan for a surprise assault. That forced them to abandon plans to execute a squeeze play to bin Laden - while entering the house by stealth from the ceiling and floor.
In contrast, arrested on the ground floor and started making a floor plan of the house, working to the highest level, where he had taken bin Laden - if he was in the house - is.
They were right.
The attackers came face to face with bin Laden in a hallway outside his bedroom, and three of the Americans raided his honor, U.S. officials reported on the operation told The Associated Press. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe an operation classified.
U.S. officials Pakistani intelligence believe it continues to support the 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 the maintenance of Pakistan in the dark was an important factor in planning the attack, and led to the use of technology in high-tech helicopters, but sometimes almost crazy unpredictable mission.
The government of Pakistan has condemned the action, and threatened to open fire if U.S. forces enter again.
On Monday, the two partners tried to mend relations and agreed to pursue high-value targets jointly.
The decision to launch this moonless night, particularly in May came in large part because too many U.S. officials had been briefed on the plan. U.S. officialsafraid if it leaked, Bin Laden would disappear for another decade.
U.S. Special operations forces have captured about four incursions into Pakistani territory since the attacks of September 11, 2001, although this, about 90 miles inside Pakistan, was unlike any other, officials say.
The work was given to a unit Seal Team 6, recently returned from Afghanistan, an official said. This branch of the elite SEAL had been searching for Bin Laden in eastern Afghanistan since 2001.
Five planes flew from Jalalabad, Afghanistan, with three school bus-size Chinook helicopter landing in a deserted area about two thirds of the way bin Laden compound in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, two officials said.
A aboard two Black Hawk helicopters were 23 SEAL, an interpreter and a tracking dog named Cairo. Nineteen SEALs would enter the enclosure, and three of them find bin Laden, officials said, provided the exact number for the first time.
On board the Chinook SEALs two dozen more, as backup.
The Black Hawks were especially designed to muffle the sound of the tail rotor and engine, two officials said. The added weight of stealth technology mean load is calculated to the ounce, with a climate factor in the night's mission, which was warmer than expected.
The Black Hawks were to drop the SEALs and out in less than two minutes in the premises were expected to assume that Pakistani planes to visit the nearby military academy.
A Black Hawk was to float on the compound, with SEALs sliding down the ropes in the open courtyard.
If the troops appeared, the plan was to dig into the enclosure, avoiding confrontation with the Pakistani army, while Washington officials negotiated their way out.
The two SEAL teams to work within the other in a simultaneous attack from above and below, silenced weapons, ensuring the surprise, one of the officials. Would have stormed the building in minutes, as he had done again and again in two models of formation of the compound.
The plan to unravel as the first helicopter tried to fly over the compound. The Black Hawk slid out of control in all the heat the rarefied air, forcing the pilot to land. As he did, the tail rotor got caught in a 12-foot walls of the compound. The pilot quickly buried the nose of the aircraft on the ground to prevent tipping, and stamps climbed out on a patio.
The other plane did not even try floating, landing its SEAL outside the complex.
Now, the robbers were out, and had lost the element of surprise.
He had trained for this, and began to blow on his way with explosives through walls and doors, working his way to the house of three levels of the bottom.
Had to fly their way through the obstacles on each landing, shot again, as one of the men in the house were shot.
Killed three men and a woman, whom U.S. officials have said they attacked the SEALs.
Small knots of children at all levels, including the balcony of the room bin Laden.
As three of the SEALs to get to the top of the steps on the third floor, they saw bin Laden, standing down the hall. Americans recognized him instantly, officials said.
Bin Laden also saw them, barely sketched in the dark house, and went into his room.
The three stamps is going for a weapon, and one by one they rushed out the door after him, described an official.
Two women were at the head of Bin Laden, screaming and trying to protect, two officials said. The first SEAL grabbed the two women and pushed them away, for fear they might be wearing suicide bomb vests, they said.
The seal behind him opened fire on bin Laden, put a bullet in the chest and once in the head.
It was again in seconds.
Back at the White House Situation Room, the word was passed that bin Laden had been found, identified by the code word "Geronimo." That was not Bin Laden the code name, but rather a representation of the letter "G" Each step of the mission was labeled in alphabetical order, and "Geronimo" means that the assailants had come to step "G", murder or capture of Bin Laden, two officials said.
The meetings began photographing the body to identify the assailants found an AK-47 rifle and a Russian-made Makarov pistol on a shelf near the door that had just run through. Bin Laden had not touched.
They were among a handful of weapons that were removed to be inventoried.
It took about 15 minutes to get Bin Laden, an official said. The next 23 or so flew by helicopter broken after arresting nine women and 18 children to get them out of reach of the explosion.
One of the waiting Chinooks flew to collect the body of bin Laden, the assailants of the broken aircraft and weapons, documents and other materials seized at the site.
The helicopters flew back to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, and the body was taken to a waiting ship U.S. Navy for Bin Laden's burial at sea, ensuring that no sanctuary in the spring around his grave.
When the SEAL team met with President Barack Obama, did not ask who shot bin Laden. He simply thanked each crew member, two officials said.
Within weeks, the team that killed bin Laden go back to training, and a couple of months, back to work abroad.
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