DB Cooper IDed?

[Ven]

Suspect dies

https://www.foxnews.com/us/db-cooper-suspect-dies-at-94

[tanta07]

There was a recent TV program on the case that ran through several suspects, and the one that seems the least implausible was Richard McCoy. McCoy pulled off the exact same crime, only months after the Cooper case, down to highjacking a plane with a fake bomb and parachuting out. With all that in mind, it's also hard to ignore his resemblance to the sketches of Cooper.

[Al Bundy's Eyes]

Well planned right up until he jumped out, massively overloaded, into torrential rain, over a wilderness, wearing a cheap suit.

Devil's in the details.

[Azarna]

The thing that interests me with this case is that everything was so very well thought out.. to a point.
He had clearly spent a long time planning this, investigating all sorts of things about how the plane worked etc.

He clearly always intended to leave the plane via parachute. But must have realized that his chances of surviving such a drop, into the terrain in question, was going to be, to say the least, tenuous.

And surely he realised that the bills would be easy to trace, making them unspendable. Or did he have a plan to fence them on to someone very quickly?

It seems odd that he planned so much, so well, then rather messed up with the end game.

[c.d.]

One thing that puzzles me is the ease with which the ransom was delivered, especially as he had released the passengers. Mrs T would have stormed the plane. ??

At approximately 7:40 p.m., the Boeing 727 took off with only five people on board: Cooper, pilot Scott, flight attendant Mucklow, copilot Rataczak, and flight engineer Harold E. Anderson.

So you have the safety of the people on board to consider as well as the effect on the plane if he detonated the bomb. Could they have interfered in some way without harm? Hard to say.

c.d.

[Dupin]

Randomly searching the web came up with <https://www.ufoinsight.com/conspiracy/unexplained/d-b-cooper-mystery>
The ufo bit is a red herring, there is one place where they say maybe DBC was an alien (No Missus, titter ye not, no indeed, perfectly possible.) The rest is interesting and gives more detail. For anyone who wishes to research this, the flight from Seattle to Reno was on flightpath V23 at 200 mph 10000 feet. The slow speed may have been to fox the fighter planes DB knew would follow. The flight began at 7:40 DB probably bailed out at 8:10/8:13. There is a good 45minute film at the very end by TVPG which puts forward a cogent case that DB didn't make it, especially as he had not specified $100 bills: 200K in twenties weighs 20 pounds!

One thing that puzzles me is the ease with which the ransom was delivered, especially as he had released the passengers. Mrs T would have stormed the plane. ??

[DJA]

I have always wondered about hypothermia. Given his supposed clothing, the altitude from which he jumped and the fact that it was lightly raining makes me believe that he would be in the early stages of hypothermia assuming he landed safely. Even if he had some sort of tinder on his person he still would need kindling and fuel and the wood on the ground would have been wet. Not a lot of margin for error. Some people have argued that he had secreted warm clothing on board and nobody can say what he had on when he jumped. On the other hand if he was smart enough to pull this off he most likely would have thought it through.

c.d.

The CIA had been experimenting with aluminized thermals (S901G) since 1965. Information was released in 2003.

[DJA]

3 packets of money was not 15%.

[c.d.]

I have always wondered about hypothermia. Given his supposed clothing, the altitude from which he jumped and the fact that it was lightly raining makes me believe that he would be in the early stages of hypothermia assuming he landed safely. Even if he had some sort of tinder on his person he still would need kindling and fuel and the wood on the ground would have been wet. Not a lot of margin for error. Some people have argued that he had secreted warm clothing on board and nobody can say what he had on when he jumped. On the other hand if he was smart enough to pull this off he most likely would have thought it through.

c.d.

[OneRound]

Part of me wants to believe it possible that Cooper's daring plan worked, but the ransom money found in the Columbia river and the fact that none of the other notes have ever been detected back in circulation makes this seem very unlikely.

Hi Joshua,

My hope and thoughts too.

Best regards,
OneRound

[DJA]

The money did not need to be circulated in USA.

Look at the activities of Nugan Hand Bank just two years later.

[Joshua Rogan]

Part of me wants to believe it possible that Cooper's daring plan worked, but the ransom money found in the Columbia river and the fact that none of the other notes have ever been detected back in circulation makes this seem very unlikely.

[DJA]

Forty years after the highjacking pure unalloyed titanium was found in Dan Cooper's tie.

Titanium was used in CIA planes,most famously Lockheed's U-2 since 1955.
Was informed of this, not long after Gary Powers was shot down,while having a good look at one at RAAF Base Laverton.
Apart from the plane proper,the wings were tipped with the stuff. Don't know what a CIA spyplane was doing there,and never asked

Anyway,titanium had been monopolized by the Soviet Union. Consequentially,USA started to stockpile at Defense National Stock Pile centers.

Incidentally the C22 was the USA military transport version of the 727.

When parts are sourced by the military,they are usually inspected at every stage of manufacture by a designated officer.
In the case of the CIA ......
Seems first inspection would be when the titanium was alloyed.

Low and behold what was Cooper wearing ...... typical black CIA spook outfit with brown shoes.

The three packets of money denote a 15% payment,with $200 taken out for traveling money.
Alternatively a red herring.

Reckon Washougal River basin looks a likely drop zone.

[OneRound]

I think it is highly likely that he died in the jump, so for suspects I would seek out men who disappeared at that time.

Hi Nick,

As his body and parachute were never found, I would guess you think he sank in deep water. Is that right? Do you have any thoughts on how some of the bank notes ended up where they were found?

Thanks,
OneRound

[NickB]

I think it is highly likely that he died in the jump, so for suspects I would seek out men who disappeared at that time.