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U.S. Special Operations helicopters near Venezuela expand Caribbean mission

The elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment appears to have flown within 90 miles of Venezuela, according to a Post visual analysis. Trump has authorized CIA covert action inside the country.

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An MH-6 helicopter flies over Tampa Bay, Florida, during a capabilities demonstration in 2024. (Gunnery Sgt. Demetrius Munnerlyn/U.S. Special Operations Command)
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The U.S. military’s elite Special Operations aviation unit appears to have flown in Caribbean waters less than 90 miles from the coast of Venezuela in recent days, according to a visual analysis by The Washington Post.

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Alex Horton is a national security reporter for The Washington Post focused on the U.S. military. He served in Iraq as an Army infantryman. Send him secure tips on Signal at alexhorton.85@AlexHortonTX
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Samuel Oakford is a senior reporter for The Washington Post's Visual Forensics team. Before joining The Post, he worked as a senior journalist at Storyful and a reporter for Vice News at the United Nations. He was also a reporter for the civilian harm monitor Airwars and conducted open source investigations for Bellingcat's Yemen Project.
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