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"Consider this: Page 104 of the TTY report says the plane was at 15,000 feet at 2001. Is that a fact? Do you believe the plane was ever at 15,000 feet? Did the FBI and NW landing zone calculation account for a fall time (drift time) from 15,000 feet? Is the reported altitude accurate?" I'd say no way on 15K. They were flying unpressurized, thats for sure. If they were at 15K unpressurized I believe the crew would have had to put oxygen masks. There is no indication that they were breathing supplemental O2. Also, it would have been needlessly risky to exceed 10K when you had a hijacker with a "bomb" telling you not to go above that altitude 15K goes in my myth file. I'd give a lot of credence to the crew quote about being in the Portland suburbs when Cooper jumped. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Although I personally have a lot of doubts that we can make a museum that will have strong appeal to the non skydiving public, I just sent in a donation via PayPal. If it is built, I sure as hell will visit it. If I didn't donate in the formative period it would be kinda hypocritical. Would sure be nice to have a real plane inside or perhaps on a pylon outside where it would catch the attention of people driving by. I vote for a ratty beat up true DZ style Twin Beech. Non airworthy examples are cheap and a Cessna, although widely representative of DZ aircraft, just doesnt have the eye punch that a Beech 18 does. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Isn't this where someone says "Bingo"? Wonder if the FBI is interested in an old knife that has some cord stuck in it - looks like parachute cord and it is real dirty? Where-ever he kept that knife it was there for a long time collecting dirt. Jo, If you say Bingo then please show us the knife with the stuck (parachute?) cord which gives you a winning Bingo card. If you post detailed close up photos the riggers here can probably identify the cord type as parachute or other. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. There are many on this forum who rule out Duane because there is nothing linking him to a chute, ever. If you have that link then it's time to show it. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Jo, If you have really good relevant evidence like a dirty knife definitely linked to Duane that has parachute shroud line material stuck in it, then show it to Ckret. If he brings in the Cooper case he will be a law enforcement legend. I don't buy it at all that he would ignore or try to suppress evidence that could solve the Cooper case. Did you just find this knife? I assume so since I don't recall any mention of it when you were looking for anything at all that could link Duane to a parachute. All I recall was an as yet unidentified piece of hardware that you sold but recalled the appearance of. The knife and cord sounds interesting. Post some pix. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

I think Winsor's conclusion is probably the most likely, but if Cooper died in that 727 jump why wasn't he missed by friends, relatives, employer, etc etc? Anyone who went missing around that time and even looked slightly like the Cooper FBI sketch would have raised a few eyebrows. Sure, if Cooper were a TOTAL loner his death might have gone unnoticed, but the odds of him being a total recluse loner are low. Very few people have no connections and would die unnoticed. If he owned a car or a house or was a renter or had a credit card, someone would notice if he died. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Has this forum gone in with a no pull? I keep wondering about Quade's speculation about some money leaving the plane before Cooper did. Does anyone have a response? Sluggo? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Howard, You have the best collection of unusual jumpships I have ever seen. How about making a website and displaying them all? You could also just post them on propliners.com as an album. The propliner fans would go nuts. Those On Mark Marksman A26 conversions were the Learjet of their day. Really fast, pressurized and flashy. The Learstars and most Howard Lodestar mods were fast, but not pressurized. The On Mark Marksman A26 mod involved major structural changes including making a ring spar pass through member to open up the cabin space previouly occupied by a straight across spar box. It is exciting that one might take to the air again. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Chuteless Bill Cole? A beer ad? Molsons? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/spo/585758293.html 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

excellent pic! Please post it on douglasdc3.com 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Thanks for the tip Councilman. Bought the eBay vacuum food saver and it is a REALLY good start. Big interior, would even take a full sized acft alt. laid on its side (still visible) or several skydiving alts laid flat. Right out of the box it goes to 6.5K before the limit switch shuts off the pump. The closing latch serves as a decent adjustable bleed valve if you open it slowly, pretty easy to simulate freefall rate of descent. Next I will bypass the limit switch and see if I can take this to 12 or 14K of vacuum without imploding it or stalling the pump motor. You couldn't possibly build this for $20 (see his other listings, I paid $20 plus shipping) so the value is truly amazing. Takes D cells (not incl) or AC adapter (incl). Made in China but not a junky item, at least from the outside. I expect a cheap DC brush motor and a flimsy diaphragm pump inside, but hey, for $20 are you expecting a brushless motor and a gear or vane pump? You will never find a cheaper brand new self powered vacuum chamber suitable for altimeter testing. Durability? Time will tell. This is going to seriously damage the market for high priced vacuum chambers that are used in applications where specs and approvals aren't crucial and which don't need super low vacuums. I think this may have other uses like getting bubbles out of adhesives, dessication etc. Any other ideas? Tried bypassing the internal limit switch and the pump stalls out at about 10K. Still, an AMAZING SMOKING deal for $20, and 10K is still useful for testing altimeters. Might try upping the input voltage to see if I can push the pump up to 12-14K at the risk of frying the motor. The unit can run on internal D cells or the wall adaptor. Actually my chamber pumps faster on the D cells, probably because they can deliver more current before the voltage sags in compasion to the small AC adaptor. Vacuum seal is pretty darn good. Takes days to go from 6.5K to sea level when you pump it down, remove power and leave it. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

http://www.mpaad.com/home_en.htm Seems like a cool idea to have everything in one unit rather than several units connected by cables and plugs. So far I have seen no reviews of any evidence of use in the USA. Can somebody give a review? Is this unit in production?

Remind me again, do we know for certain when the rear stair door was lowered? Before takeoff or in-flight? In flight according to all I have read and also according to Ckret of the FBI. Cooper had trouble opening the door which lead to some speculation that he originally intended to jump much earlier, perhaps very soon after takeoff. Then I personally don't see the location of either the placard or bag of money to be positively and absolutely linked to the exit point at all. Since nobody actually saw Cooper exit, the bag and placard could have departed the aircraft at any time. It's entirely possible the placard blew off when the door was being opened, when the door "rebounded" or just randomly due to wind blowing by it. As for the bag, it's entirely possible that while he was attempting to gear up, he dropped it and it rolled out the back several minutes before he did. Quade is right, strictly speaking, nothing is proven by these finds. To my mind, the odds say Cooper exited at the time of the pressure bump and that the placard and found money very roughly define a line of flight. I guess turbulence could have bumped the door, but I think the more likely explanation is that Cooper's exit did it, especially after looking at the sled exit test in flight photos. I hadn't really thought about the possibility that the found money was accidently (or intentionally??) dropped prior to Cooper's exit. Another example of how helpful it is to get different viewpoints posted here. Sluggo, what about a pre exit release of a small part of the loot? Your thoughts? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Remind me again, do we know for certain when the rear stair door was lowered? Before takeoff or in-flight? In flight according to all I have read and also according to Ckret of the FBI. Cooper had trouble opening the door which lead to some speculation that he originally intended to jump much earlier, perhaps very soon after takeoff. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

For example, that professor's findings about the money location are critical. Did the FBI get a second opinion? My guess is no. reply] If we knew what kind of dredge was used it might help us to figure out if the Prof. was right about the money arrving at the site post dredging. If it was a pump type dredge I REALLY doubt if the money stacks could have stayed intact in the process. They are violent machines utilizing big centrifugal pumps. A bucket type dredge is another matter. The money and the door placard (if positively linked to NWA 305) tell us more about the flight path and Cooper's likely exit point than any other evidence does. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Myth: Cooper looked for, found, and removed a packing card from at least one of the rigs he was given. (an oft repeated statment on Cooper blogs but no investigative record can be found that substantiates this claim). 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

OK, lets give it a try. I hope we dont have huge overlaps between fact and myth lists. Forum particpants, lets have your myths along with a simple explanation of why you conclude that it is myth not fact. another MYTH: Cooper's exit did not cause airstair door to slam up towards fuselage and cause cabin pressure "bump" therefore bump reported by crew is not indicative of Cooper exit time. (in flight sled exit test photos supplied by FBI clearly show immediate door recoil movement sufficient to cause "bump") 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Good idea Sluggo. Here are some things that I have concluded are myths. It would help to give a short explanation as to why something is being tagged as myth. Cooper said he had a wrist altimeter. (no record located that he actually said this) NWA 727s had RTTY gear aboard in 1971. (emails with NWA 727 pilots and examination of 727 avionics history) USAF SAGE air defense radar center at McChord AFB would have tracked Cooper's exiting body. (a myth started by yours truly but refuted by emails with a SAGE engineer) I suggest leaving out things like Cooper was Weber or McCoy because until the case is solved ALL claims that known persons were actually Cooper are speculative. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Pretty good fact summary Sluggo. Body never REPORTED found, yes indeed. There may be some local boys who hit the jackpot. If Cooper was a no pull and went into a farm field he would have been found for sure, perhaps even the next day. A body with no chute deployed wouldn't stand out much even if aerial searchers flew over the area. I think if he went into the woods as a no pull, vultures would have found him after a few weeks and that would have caught the attention of someone who was doing some deep thinking. Still, that doesnt explain how the found cash bundles made their way to Tena Bar on the Columbia River does it? Are you omitting the found 727 door placard as a "fact" because it was never confirmed as one missing from NWA 305? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Maybe this was already covered but Mike Swain in his very entertaining book Endless Fall goes into great detail about gun cameras. He talks about finding a surplus cache of the highly coveted 12-14 volt (instead of standard 24-28 volt) versions. He also mentions lens adaptors, frame rate changes and other mods. The camera flyers of those days risked serious neck injuries if they had a slammer. They carried some serious weight up top. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Winsor is right, but he and even Quade recognize that this forum intertwines investigation with fun and extreme speculation. Outlandish theories are accepted and even encouraged to some degree. We inevitably assign order to chaos in the process of reverse engineering Cooper's jump. Cooper's jump was likely extremely chaotic. If he had plans they didn't work out 100% or the money would never have been found (Winsor's point). It almost had to be chaotic given the circumstances: night, cold, rain, imprecise location info, unfamiliar gear, improvised money containment, fast exit , unsleeved canopy, fear, etc etc. But what if??? Those what ifs are fun and nobody has positively ruled them out. Remember, NONE of the big stuff has been found, no body, no gear. We cannot rule out that Cooper walked away alive. If Cooper executed a farmland jump, then his chances of survival increase. Sluggo has given a way that it might have happened, however unlikely. Jumpship navigation isnt a trivial exercise once you are off DZ. To add to the problem, Cooper did not have command of the aircraft course athough Sluggo says he might have cleverly influenced it to suit his needs by specifying a maximum altitude and a particular destination. In 1967, a surplus B 25 with VOR gear and in radio contact with ATC accidently dropped a load of jumpers over over Lake Erie, far from shore. Most drowned. It was cloudy. Mistakes were made by the pilot and by ATC. Stuff happens when you jump in bad weather and over unfamiliar locations. Bad stuff. There is a principal used in scientific inquiry called Occam's Razor. Wikipedia describes it as follows: "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best." In other words, when multiple competing theories are equal in other respects, the principle recommends selecting the theory that introduces the fewest assumptions and postulates the fewest entities." Applying Occam, the likeliest outcome is that Cooper went in and his body has not been found. Everything else takes more assumptions. I am sure others disagree and I welcome the oncoming backlash/dialog. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

We have all been there, CYPRES 1 expiring soon, thinking about becoming a rigger so you can sign your own pack cards keep your CYPRES 1 in your rig for another decade (cause ya just know it isnt worn out), etc, etc. Sooner or later reality sets in. You bite the $1xxx ++ bullet and make a choice for a new AAD purchase. To me it isnt even a close call. I want the product made by the company with the most experience in skydiving AADs. That company is Airtec. Look at that 777 that crashed short of the runway in London a few weeks ago. The software controlled engines wouldnt respond to to pilot or autopilot commands and the 777 essentially became a glider. 777s have been flying a long time, but some new combination of events came up and a malfunction occurred. Cypres 1's have been around long enough that all the big bugs have already been worked out (RF interference, rate gate set too low for extreme swoopers, etc). Cypres 2 is a very mature product and as an electrical engineer I REALLY like that. I also like Airtecs attitude as shown when they had misfires on a plane (C 130) used in one of the Thailand Huge Ways. The misfires or lockouts were not really the fault of the AAD (aircraft pressurization problems) but Airtec immediately dispatched a rep to Thailand with replacement AADs. No other AAD mfr was as responsive. They also (in conjunction with SSK, their US affiliate) test test and test. They are always looking for potential faults and ways to improve. When I was at WFFC one year they had black box pressure sensing recorders strapped to volunteers to investigate what happens on a high speed tumbling exit. Will a VIGIL or other cheaper AAD work OK? Yes, they will, but for my money I want the oldest most tested basic design available even if it is less than state of the art (Hey Airtec, don't you think it's time to upgrade that ancient seven segment LCD display?). I know Airtec will support the product and that they have a very solid company in the US )(SSK) so that not everything has to go to Germany for work. I talked shop with the SSK folks and I was very impressed with all the circuit and software design choices made by Airtec. Every AAD design has had misfires, but Airtec has the lowest rate in my expereince. Airtec claims that no Cypres properly set up has ever failed to fire when needed. That sounds pretty eextreme, but I am glad if it's true. Was I tempted to buy an AAD that was cheaper or had no factory maintenance requirements? Sure, but then good sense kicked in and I bought a Cypres 2. As an electrical engineer and a father with two kids I wanted an AAD that was well engineered and would deliver my kids' Dad to the ground alive if everything went wrong. I have had two cutaways but never an AAD fire. All things considered, I chose the Cypres 2 as the best AAD solution for me: mature, well designed and well supported.

13? Amazing! Go to college, go to graduate school, get into a good profession. Skydiving is a great hobby but a difficult career. Skydivers want everything dirt cheap. That attitude makes all those who depend on skydiving for a living dirt poor. The pros lead exciting but relatively impoverished lives. How skydiving professionals can buy a house, raise a family and send their kids to college baffles me. Perhaps they marry a rich tandem student? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

At the time of the DB Cooper caper, there were no portable devices capable of doing this and from Cooper's place in the aircraft he would have no way of knowing his position relative to any such device. Not that Cooper used it, and a surrounding aircraft structure would complicate the matter, but there is a crude way to DF using only a receiver, no VOR processing electronics nor any directional antenna. It has been used to locate activated ELT beacons using only a handheld receiver. The following excerpted from L-Per RDF website: Radio direction finding using body shielding: The procedure is to use a short wire stuck into the receiver antenna input. Its a good idea to have a short antenna (6 inches) . If you are close enough you may be able to get a signal with no antenna at all. Hold the receiver in close to your body, with the antenna also close to you. Your body will affect the signal (by absorption) in the same way that wing shadowing does in the air. Slowly, rotate your self and the receiver as a unit through 360 degrees. At some point you should note a minimum. You are then facing directly away from the transmitter. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Looks like a decent DZ to me, but Cooper had to be a navigation genius and have incredibly good luck to have actually exited over this precise area BY DESIGN. I wonder if there was anything that could be seen from a 727 at 10K that would have indicated he was over the VOR station? Do VOR radial antenna arrays (which are not very high) have distinctive lights when they are located off airport? If Cooper exited here and managed to pull the ripcord handle, he survived, in my opinion. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.