D B Cooper Unsolved Skyjacking

That was a rhetorical remark I made regarding the Moderators. Sorry you missed it. And actually, I believe I do have the right to be a "dick" as you put it. Just like everyone here has the right to be a "dick" about my post. Not that I'm calling any of you "dicks" of course.


However, I wasn't being a "dick." I was making a joke about a topic that seems to be sacred to many of you, regardless of the evidence. So Happy Thanksgiving.

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WHERE ARE THE MODS?? It's ok to attack a REAL PERSON like me, but NOT ok to JOKE about an anonomous poster?? I see your true colors.

Does that mean you're leaving?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Ciels-
Michele

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but NOT ok to JOKE about an anonomous poster??

First of all dimwit, it's Mrs. Duane Weber NOT an anonomous poster, as she has made very clear as to who she is and why she is here in more then one post.

And just how do you know 100% he died that nite, because some cash was found?
Let's see, he jumped out of a jet, more then enough blast on exit to lose some of the cash.
But with your whole one year in the sport I guess you already know this.

***Come around Jumptown sometime and introduce yourself.***

I think ,NOT!
But maybe you could post your grandmothers phone number so we call her up and be as rude as you, to her, my guess is you wouldn't care much for some talking that way to your grandmother if she was looking for info on you here.

Understood

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This is a photo of duane weber from the Wikipedia article on D.B Cooper. The right picture is the FBI's drawing of D.B Cooper

Thank you for posting that photo. This was the one that I found early on in my search. The photos that I found later are the one that were not supposed to exist. I am axious to get them posted and get the feed back from those - and hope that someone shows them to an old timer who can help me.

I just made a long Post and then lost it all.
I suppose it is just as well. I had addressed a lot of the questions that many of you have, but now it is late and I just cannot do it over again. Tonight is the 35 th anniversary.

Think about these things:

The Vector that the FBI would later say was much farther South and East than the search zone.

A trip Duane took me on in 1979 to the area only months before the money was found at Frenchmans reef.

His not needing a map - and how well he knew the area and yet the FBI couldn't put him in WA at any time except for the time he spent in McNeil in the 40's - which I was able to prove with black and white documents along with the help of a reporter. The FBI had originally told me that Duane was never a resident of McNeil. They conceded only upon finding that I had documents to the contrary.

I composed what I thought was my best description of the "Sentimental Journey" that he took me on in 1979 and then lost the whole thing. This is a bad omen.

It matters because she was married to this man. If you were in the same shoes, wouldn't it be difficult for you to just 'let it rest'?

It matters because of all the people that said he could not have done it and survived.

Just curious, why does it matter?

By "proving" he was D.B. Cooper one of life's little mysteries goes out the window and a man that is for some a folk hero is taken from mythical proportions to that of a common mortal.

Isn't it actually "better" if it's never proven either way? The story never ends and the legend continues.


***


Maybe I can offer an answer, not trying to put words in Jo's mouth but she & I have been corresponding and I think I may understand somewhat.


Imagine being married to someone that you 'thought' you knew and were close to, living a 'normal' life....then your mate takes ill and passes. Suddenly you are basically blindsided by the realization that you've ( quite possibly and ) unknowingly shared your life with a 'folk hero' the likes of a Jesse James.

You begin doing some basic research to find out just how much of, that part of, YOUR LIFE may have been a lie, the deeper you dig the more you come to understand that pretty much your entire life, for that period of time anyway....

...could have been a sham, or at least not what you were led to believe, by the person you most trusted.

Wouldn't you too want to know the TRUTH about YOUR life?

The D.B. Cooper that WE turned into a folklore anti-hero may have been the guy this woman gave her heart to under false pretences. Jo Weber didn't even know who D.B. Cooper WAS when her husband claimed to be him...If anyone has a interest in knowing the truth...SHE DOES.




To address some of the rather distasteful comments directed toward Jo~

She came to 'us' for some possible help and insight...she's not an Internet 'troll' trying to scam you out of your precious post whoring, she didn't even know WHERE on this site to ask and get the most response until I discussed it with her.

Check her posts...She's asking for our help...
not money, not 'attention', she's not even 'stirring the pot' by negatively addressing those who insult her.

Just asking if anyone is on here from 'back in the day' that may have come across someone answering to one of the many aliases she discovered her husband was using.

A simple plea for assistance with information, something we in the 'Skydiving Family' should be at least somewhat as curious about, as she is...

For some reason there are those in our 'family' that think it fit & proper to insult and degrade in an attempt to discredit a woman who only asked our help in seeking the truth.

I told Jo... 'It wouldn't hurt' to start a thread in the Bonfire since that seems to be the forum frequented most...

Guess I was wrong because it did hurt...it gave 'Our Family' a bit of a black eye in regard to how some of us, treat people that come here for help.

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I see your true colors.

and that's why I loooove you

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and that's why I loooove you

So don't be afraid, to let them show...

'Twardo, some people are here to help if they can, and are curious to see what transpires if they can't help. I think it's great that you've been doing your best to help Jo out. You're right - she's asking for nothing other than didja know this guy. Not money, not fame, not anything other than help that only a few can give.

I'd be very interested to know, as well. Howeve, I disagree with your statement that her life was a lie. Her life wasn't. She loved true, and she didn't lie about that. Whom she loved was whom she loved. If he hid things from her, that's his issue...and does not reflect on her. Yes, of course I understand the curiousity; as an adopted child, I had to seek and find my birth family. I know that sort of driving curiousity. But it doesn't mean anything that Jo felt/feels for the man she loved was a lie - from her. perhaps from him, but not from her.

Not saying you said that, just wanted to reach out to Jo and let her know what I thought - love, honest love, is never a lie.

Ciels-
Michele

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I just made a long Post and then lost it all.
I suppose it is just as well. I had addressed a lot of the questions that many of you have, but now it is late and I just cannot do it over again. Tonight is the 35 th anniversary.

A suggestion;

In the future, you may wish to make your long posts within Microsoft Word, or WordPerfect, or another word processor with an auto-save feature. Then you can Copy-and-Paste into Dropzone.com. It is a good idea when writing long posts that take more than one hour.

P.S. I am in agreement with airtwardo here. Many of the earlier posts look very authentic, if someone reads every single post listed within http://tinyurl.com/yyahml ... I am anxious to see these photos and hope you are corresponding with someone helpful such as airtwardo to actually get them posted. More people needs to give you the benefit of doubt, as I have been following this story more closely than many of the other dropzone.com members who didn't read all of her earlier posts in all of the separate threads that lead credence to giving courteous and polite non-sarcastic benefit of doubt to this person.

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It matters because of all the people that said he could not have done it and survived.

Yeah...the ones who's KIDS probably now jump the jet at WFFC!

Personally... I think he could have done it and survived....

I started jumping that kind of gear all those long years ago.....and have hundreds of round jumps..

I have hunted all over that area.... and know it well...and tree landings are not all tha hard to do....been there

Jumping a jet... HELL there are a bunch of people who have done it and..... OMG... survived.

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Personally... I think he could have done it and survived....

I started jumping that kind of gear all those long years ago.....and have hundreds of round jumps..

I have hunted all over that area.... and know it well...and tree landings are not all tha hard to do....been there

Jumping a jet... HELL there are a bunch of people who have done it and..... OMG... survived.

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Very interesting!

Now if I can just keep you on the line until a field agent can get there.....

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

I've been following Jo's story since last year when it was first publicized and can only imagine what she's going through . . .

I started jumping a few years after the incident occurred, but even in 1975, few nights around the bonfire passed without some mention of who DB Cooper really was. The central point of discussion, at the time, was if DB Cooper was an experienced jumper or not?

It would seem pretty crazy (to us jumpers) to plan the whole thing and leave the "getaway" to such chance without some prior experience. But then again we know people who don't jump think what's the big deal? You jump, you pull the thing, and you land.

But, there are several things that don’t make sense – and I could be wrong – but I always figured an experienced jumper would have carried a personal rig onboard, rather than request the two (or three) parachutes, like he did along with the ransom money. The point of asking for more than one parachute made sense, as there would be the chance he forced one or more of the remaining crew members to jump also, and this would preclude sabotaging the rigs in any way.

There was also enough time between the takeoff, with the money and rigs, and the jump, that he could have opened a rig and did a quick I&R before jumping.

Everyone at the time had their personal theory on who DB Cooper was. My guess was a certain local gear manufacturer in Lake Elsinore who was the right age and looked a bit like the description and the sketch . . .

Another idea floated was there was no DB Cooper at all. The whole thing was a story offered up by the flight deck and cabin crew who threw the empty rigs out the back and kept the money for themselves. This is somewhat plausible as, I believe, not one of the released passengers said they ever saw the guy.

On the other side, the practical side, we see that even today, local authorities - all the way up to the FBI – don’t know butkus about parachutes and jumping. So we don't really know how much information that exists is even credible. They probably weren't even asking the right questions.

As for the small amount of the money found, yep, I would have scattered some of it too. DB Cooper probably figured the authorities would first conclude such a jump was impossible and this played into that theory.

However, the WX was so bad in the area of the jump; an experienced jumper would have probably avoided that and picked another flight.

In any case, Jo deserves to know if the man she lived a life with was something other than what she thought he was . . .

NickD
BASE 194

and I could be wrong – but I always figured an experienced jumper would have carried a personal rig onboard, rather than request the two (or three) parachutes, like he did along with the ransom money.

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He couldn't...he had the 'bomb' as a carry on and skydiving was 'conventional' gear back then...

...you know what a problem it is, to try to smuggle that THIRD carry on bag !

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~