Origins & Early Life

On November 24, 1971, an unidentified man using the alias Dan Cooper, subsequently known as D. B. Cooper, hijacked Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305, a Boeing 727 aircraft flying from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington. Cooper told the flight crew he had a bomb, and demanded $200,000 in ransom (equivalent to $1,600,000 in 2025) and four parachutes upon landing in Seattle.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

After releasing the passengers in Seattle, Cooper directed the crew to refuel the aircraft and begin a second flight to Mexico City, with a refueling stop in Reno, Nevada. After taking off from Seattle, Cooper opened the aircraft's aft door, deployed the airstair, and parachuted to an uncertain fate over a remote, heavily wooded area of Southwest Washington. Because of a reporter's error, the aircraft hijacker became known as D. B. Cooper.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The hijacker's true identity and fate remain unknown. In 1980, a small portion of the ransom money ($6,000) was found along the banks of the Columbia River near Vancouver, Washington. The discovery of the money renewed public interest in the crime but yielded no additional information, and the remaining money was never recovered. For 45 years after the hijacking, the Federal...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

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