The articles I saw indicated there were four choppers total. I'm not sure whether they were right there or just nearby, but the article gave the impression that they were there in case they had to engage the Pakistani Air Force.
Surely if they did need to engage the Pakistani Air Force (and it's claimed that they had Pakistani permission for the raid) they'd want fighter jets, not extra helicopters?
Presumably they had those too, we don't know. It does make quite a bit of sense to have a backup in case something goes wrong, even under the high-stealth circumstances.
Remember that we have no idea what was in those helos, they could've held more SEALs, or sophisticated medical equipment, or even heavy weapons (although if they were also blackhawks that's less likely.)
Oh, certainly. I agree, the extra helicopters would have been kept at a safe distance just in case one or more of the others had a problem. They've obviously learned a lot from Operation Eagle Claw (this is required reading for understanding this raid):
