WA WA - D.B. Cooper hijacking mystery, 24 Nov 1971 - #3

[snowleopard]

I, for one, don't believe it was Rackstraw. Despite the interesting resume, Rackstraw was 27 at the time of the hijacking. >http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-db-cooper-documentary-2016jul13-story.html
Most descriptions put Cooper at 35-50, Ms. Schaffner said mid 40's.
Ms Schaffner, and several passengers said the hijacker appeared to be of latin, or Mexican descent. The true.ink FBI file dump has witness descriptions, both passenger and crew.
Tina Mucklow was shown Rackstraw's photo on the History Channel program and said he didn't look like the hijacker.
The FBI has dna from the tie, assuming it's Coopers, it would be easy to ID him. >>http://abcnews.go.com/US/db-cooper-dna-results-match/story?id=14258726

 

[KaaBoom]

If he said Portland, it would have removed all the element of surprise. Authorities would have known five minutes later, that he jumped. SF was the crew's first suggestion. He was trying to buy more time. He knew which way they were going to fly in, and he didn't care. He didn't care about anything, except getting the money and getting back to Portland without them knowing.

I have been thinking about this some more, while looking at some flight trackers for Seattle to San Francisco flights. If Cooper had agreed to let the plane refuel at San Francisco, the route would have likely taken them far west of Portland. Possibly even over the Pacific Ocean. Though probably about half way between the coast and Portland. That would not have been good for Cooper.

By insisting that they fly at 10,000 feet, and knowing that Reno was the next destination, Cooper pretty much ensured that the plane would fly over Portland, without specifically telling them to fly to Portland and tipping them off to his intended jump location. He knew they weren't going to fly over 14,000 foot peaks, and he knew they wouldn't fly farther west than they needed to. Because that would have just burned up more fuel. Which is the last thing the crew would have wanted to do.

 

[kemo]

I just got done listening to the Generation Why podcast with Thomas Colbert who was involved in the History Channel documentary naming Robert Rackstraw as DB Cooper and now the book The Last Master Outlaw, which further documents their case.

I'm not sold on Rackstraw as DB. He was 27 in 1971 and the general impression has always been of someone in his 40's. The story of the cocaine dealer and the hippy family I find a little shakey and he can't really be placed in the North West at the time. Still, Rackstraw is a real interesting guy. The kind of swashbuckling outlaw we sort of expect DB to be.

 

[snowleopard]

I watched Expedition Unknown's DB Cooper episode. It doesn't cover a lot of detail, but there was one idea that was new to me. An ex Marine was on and said he thought the 'bump' the crew felt near Portland was a diversion to fool them into believing he had jumped (guy is convinced Cooper was military), when he really hung on until north of Reno and jumped in the flatlands and sage brush instead of the perilous forest. The main problem I have is did he 'hang around' on the aft stairs for 3 hours. The weather in Reno was hi 55, low 23 the day before, ((https://newspaperarchive.com/reno-evening-gazette-nov-24-1971-p-14/)), I'd guess 30 lower at 10,000, and colder near Portland. Those would be some number fingers! Apart from that, it's kind of interesting. There was also a letter mailed to the Reno Evening Gazette. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...coopers-letter-reno-evening-journal/87041498/.

 

[chissus]

How would one create a "bump" that would be credible?

 

[snowleopard]

I think the idea is that Cooper did a bit of a hop on the ramp and then waited, then maybe jumped or did a controlled fall off the ramp later, not sure of the feasibility of it. I did a quick view of Google Earth with an eye toward where a Seattle to Reno vs Seattle to Mexico City trajectory would take him. Although I know air routes would differ from that, it looks like quite a lot more flat/scrubby and less forest as you go to SW Oregon/NW California and N Nevada, so maybe he considered that, who knows. I think there was pretty strong southwesterly prevailing wind that evening, so it seems his fall would've had a nw drift. I just feel that something is 'wrong' in the assumptions being made, either drop zone, or scouring society for missing persons etc. I'm beginning to think he either landed in the water or the presumed drop zone is quite a bit off.

 

[chissus]

This makes me feel much more confident of his sanity. Jumping off an airplane in a forest is crazy. He could really be alive somewhere. I wonder how old he would be? Is there a statute of limitation on a crime like this? I wish he would/could come forward and tell us how he did it. I wouldn't want him to go to jail though.

 

[KaaBoom]

This makes me feel much more confident of his sanity. Jumping off an airplane in a forest is crazy. He could really be alive somewhere. I wonder how old he would be? Is there a statute of limitation on a crime like this? I wish he would/could come forward and tell us how he did it. I wouldn't want him to go to jail though.

He would be about 91 years old. I believe there is no statute of limitations on his crime.

 

[chissus]

Rats. He must be dead or he'd have come out years ago. He must have been desperate for the money.

 

[kemo]

He would be about 91 years old. I believe there is no statute of limitations on his crime.

There is a statute of limitations on hijacking but there was a "John Doe" inditement which means the statute would no longer apply.

 

[snowleopard]

It may also mean that those close to him who may have suspected are starting to disappear.....

 

[Owutatangledweb]

There is a statute of limitations on hijacking but there was a "John Doe" inditement which means the statute would no longer apply.

Flight to avoid prosecution in many States may toll the statute of limitations from running.

 

[COE]

Wow, 51 pages of DB Cooper talk!

Thought you all would enjoy this new podcast that dives into the mystery of DB Cooper! It's a collaboration between Confluence of Events and the Seattle Files.

Check it out and let us know what you think.

https://soundcloud.com/confluenceofevents/true-crime-db-cooper

Send feedback here or on Twitter. TIA!

 

[nickyb233]

I’ve been wrong about Cooper about a million times, but so was Edison about the lightbulb until he got it right. Lol. I believe Cooper was James E. Klansnic, a WW2 Vet and POW. He worked for Boeing for 37 years as a hydraulic engineer and manager. He is identical in looks to Cooper even down to the Olive Complexion. When yal Google him you will see him under a Boeing 727 and see an article he wrote in 1964 that he even talks about the aft stairs. The sketch matches him, and so does the particles on the tie. Parachuting experience is also included when his B-17 was shot down in Austria and he was captured in a deserted cabin. His mom spoke some German, so it was a great possibility that’s where he may have got acquainted with the Dan Cooper comics since Cooper was shot down too. He was around 50 at the time which goes along with some of the witness accounts according to the FBI files. I have sent emails to the FBI and his son and maybe I will hear something back tomorrow. I know it’s a long shot but maybe they could get a DNA match and solve or his son knows something. He was a very generous guy who did a lot for charity and looked as though he had the perfect life. His obituary is very entertaining and informative, check it out.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/seattletimes/obituary.aspx?pid=171919810

 

[nickyb233]

Klansnic knew more about the Boeing 727 flap settings and the altitude capabilities than almost anyone

 

[snowleopard]

Interesting guy, Nickyb. Are his whereabouts known for Thanksgiving 1971?

 

[nickyb233]

Interesting guy, Nickyb. Are his whereabouts known for Thanksgiving 1971?

He was never a suspect so that was never looked into...his kids can tell us but they are not talking to me, I am convinced the family knows something. My theory is he hid in plain sight all these years. He went to work on monday and carried on as normal. No criminal backround the the fbi profile was looking for a dirty rotten criminal (qouting himselsbeth agent on the case at the time) and got rid of the cash after he heard the bills were marked. He left the 3 bundles as a gesture to tina mucklow who jokingly asked cooper for some of the money on the plane and he offered her 3 bundles. Of all the bodies of water in that area and it ended up on tina bar to big of a coincidence for me.

 

[snowleopard]

Never thought of the 'Tina' connection before....

 

[jbirner]

Yes, I don't think that is a coincidence either.

 

[iron_iking]

Whomever Cooper was, I don't think he was an amateur or a nutty fool. He was too cold and calculating, as described by the flight attendant Tina Mucklow.

And no one is going out into that weather and cold on the air stairs unless they believe they can actually pull this off

Plus we know that at least one skyjacker has survived a jump from a identical plane, albeit in good weather.

Finally, as for the money, the fact that it never turned up, except for the Teena Bar bundles, tells me that the skyjacker held onto most of it, or he had a scheme to launder it before he ever got on those air stairs. Back in that timeframe if the money was moved quickly to Asia, maybe it could've been laundered before any of the notices went up. And then there were the Vegas casinos, who were doing a lot of illegal stuff at the time to benefit the Mob.

And, as for the Tenna Bar/Tina tie-in, maybe it's not far-fetched. About the time that the money turned up and the story got press attention again, Mucklow, who was by all accounts pretty freaked out about the incident, began the process of becoming a nun, and was one for 12 years.