No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden

to track Ahmed al-Kuwaiti, watching his patterns. They noticed he drove a white truck with a picture of a rhino on the spare-tire cover. The CIA eventually tracked the truck back to the compound in Abbottabad, which now sat in model-form in front of me.

    The CIA assessment said Bin Laden lived on the third floor of A1, the main building. His son Khalid lived on the second floor. The CIA expected at least one or two wives and a dozen kids. Kids are typically found at most targets we assault so this was an issue we were very familiar with.
    Jay and Mike had helped plan the mission’s broad strokes in Washington weeks before, but it was our job to get into the weeds and really put the plan to the test. We knew our capabilities better than anyone, and since we were being trusted to execute the operation we would also have a critical role in the planning.
    We all gathered around the model, as Jay and Mike started talking about where the planning was to date. Since the guys had been at it for twenty-four hours, the broad strokes of the plan had started to come together.
    “We’re going to fly to the X,” Jay said. “Chalk One will rope into the courtyard.”
    Moving over to the south side of the model, Jay pointed at the guesthouse, designated C1.
    “Mark, you and your crew are responsible for C1,” Jay said. “Your team will move directly to the guesthouse. The sniper will clear the carport and then set up on the roof. You guys will clear and secure C1. Ahmed al-Kuwaiti lives in the house with his wife and kids. When you’re finished, move to backfill Tom’s team in A1.”
    The remaining assaulters in Chalk One, led by Tom, would split up and make their way to A1.
    “Charlie and Walt will move to the north door of A1 and wait,” Jay said. “They think the Pacer typically uses that door. The CIA’s assessment says there is likely a spiral staircase that leads up to his living quarters on the third floor.”
    Tom and his team would move to the southern door, enter, and clear the first floor. The courier’s brother, Abrar Ahmed al-Kuwaiti, was thought to live on the first floor of the building with his family. Based on what Tom saw inside, his team would either clear through to the north door or let Charlie and Walt in. If blocked, they would exit and loop around to the north door.
    “We have no idea of the layout inside the house other than we suspect that the house is cut into two living areas,” Jay said. “So Charlie and Walt will hold their position until Tom gives them the all-clear to breach.”
    Meanwhile, the second helicopter—carrying Chalk Two—would drop off a five-person team north of the compound that would act as external security. Two assaulters and the CAD (combat assault dog) would patrol the perimeter of the compound. The dog would be used to track down squirters. The remaining two assaulters and the interpreter would position themselves just to the northeast corner of the compound to deal with possible onlookers or local police.
    This external security job was actually one of the biggest and most dangerous positions on the raid. If we ran long on target, they would have to deal with first responders, most likely police, and the threat of military forces showing up. It wasn’t the sexy mission, but it was absolutely essential and could end up being the most dynamic.
    “Once outer security is dropped off, the helo will pick up and hover above A1 and the remaining assaulters are going to rope onto the roof, make their way down onto the third-floor balcony, and clear the third deck.”
    If the intelligence was correct and everything went according to plan, that was the team that was most likely to encounter Bin Laden first.
    The rest of the brief Jay and Mike spent going over the load plan. Finally they designated several “pro” words for the operation. Pro words are one-word messages that relay information in an efficient manner. This kept radio traffic to a minimum and made passing information more reliable. On this mission, we chose pro words with a Native American theme.
    “UBL is Geronimo,” Jay said.
    The mission briefing took about an hour, and when we were done Mike and Jay left.
    “Now you guys shoot holes in this,” Mike said. “Jay and I have been looking at this for several weeks now. You guys got it yesterday. Take some time and really get into the weeds.”
    We tried never to fall in love with a plan, because that breeds complacency.
    The first thing we tried to