D.B. Cooper who?

Was $200,000.00 worth the jump? D.B Cooper, a man of mystery, hijacked a plane and got away with it. On November 24, 1971, a tall male, with brown hair and a pair of mirrored sunglasses boarded a plane with only a briefcase (FBI Records: The Vault 1). Dan Cooper jumped out of the moving airplane at an altitude of 10,000 feet, going 230 miles an hour with his requested 200,000 dollars, four parachutes, and the ransom note (Kenck-Crispin 1). After the famous jump, it stirred up two questions (Marks 1). Did D.B Cooper die or did D.B Cooper survive the jump? Let us look over both theories then decide where you fall.  

There is no evidence to prove that D.B. Cooper even existed as a documented citizen. No birth certificate, death certificate, or social security number could be linked with this devious but intelligent man. Being 1971, airport security was not existent. So, giving a fake name without proof of identity was perfect for D.B.’s end game. Moreover, he was able to board a plane with an uncontested briefcase containing a bomb. (Marks 1) This will ultimately gain negotiation leverage in the air when Mr. Cooper decided to activate his well thought out plan to highjack Northwestern Airlines flight 305 headed to Seattle. 

D.B. Cooper appeared to be a businessman like many others boarding the flight. There is no reason for the flight staff and passengers to be alarmed of his presence. However, the clad gentleman dressed in his black suit and tie entered the unsuspecting plane with a bomb. When flight 305 takes off that afternoon, D.B. Cooper infamously commits the perfect crime that still has the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) perplexed. (FBI Records: The Vault 1) He sat back in his seat patiently waiting for the perfect moment to execute his plan. Tina, the flight attendant working that day, was handed a note from D.B that his briefcase had a bomb, be quiet about it, get ahold of the captain and let us talk about my demands.  

There are two theories on what happened to D.B. Cooper. The first theory is the mystifying man survived the 200,000.00 jump since there is no factual evidence proving he died. While the second theory contradicts the first theory and is said D.B Cooper plummeted to his death. Both theories raise a lot of questions.  

Theory one suggests D.B Cooper jumped out of the plane with his demands and survived. It is speculated that D.B Cooper was a former paratrooper that had knowledge of what he was doing. (Rosa) He requested the plane to be traveling at a certain speed and at a certain altitude so he could make the perfect jump. No evidence arose, such as a body, a parachute, footprints, or a shred of clothing. Another sign of survival is the money that was buried eighteen miles from his landing site near the Columbia River. (Wilson) How did the money get there? Studies prove the money did not wash to shore. (Wilson) 

Second theory suggests D.B Cooper died on Thanksgiving eve of the year 1971. D.B. Cooper, jumping out of an airplane in a wooded area in a freezing storm with a wind chill of –60 degrees have left a lot of people questioning if he died that night. (Northcutt) According to the first FBI detective, Ralph Himmelsbach, said “The skyjacker would have hit the ground at a speed of at least 50 miles an hour, all but ensuring injury of some sort, and quite possibly a fatal one.” (Douglas Perry/Oregonlive.com(TNS)) It was said Himmelsbach was convinced D.B Cooper was incompetent and certainly perished on the night of the high jacking. (Douglas Perry/Oregonlive.com(TNS)) 

D.B. Cooper, the man of mystery, has left the FBI puzzled for 52 years. Even though there are people in disbelief about D.B. Cooper’s survival, there are more facts pointing towards he survived the jump. For instance, there is no parachute, no clothing or a body to say that he died. On the contrary, with the freezing rain and wind chill of –60 degrees it is plausible that any human would perish in those extreme weather conditions. In 2023, D.B. Cooper’s case remains a mystery and it is now up to the people to decide if he lived or died the night of November 24, 1971.