Stewardess account of the hijacking, report pages 11-15
Report a problem
Email this to [email protected]
Id: Cooper-Part-112:032-036
Subject: Cooper Files: Cooper-Part-112:032-036 Document: Stewardess account of the hijacking, report pages 11-15 Id: Cooper-Part-112:032-036 Page: https://cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-112%3A032-036 What is wrong (title, date, type, which pages belong together, copies)? What does the scan show?
A person reads every report. Corrections are made by hand, to the data — titles, dates, names, which pages belong together — never to the scans, and they can take a while to appear.
FBI 164-81, Vault Part 112 pp. 32–36 (DB Cooper-7058–7062), Report — cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-112%3A032-036
SE 164-81
---
The two chest parachutes were obtained from [REDACTED], at Issaquah, Washington. They were delivered to NWA facilities by Washington State Patrol, but because of heavy commuter traffic, their delivery was slowed.
---
The plane landed at Sea-Tac at 5:46 PM and was [guess: taxied] parked on an unlighted runway, away from the terminal and other traffic. The fuel trucks immediately began to refuel the plane and [REDACTED] and Seattle Police Department Detective [REDACTED] who had brought the money from the airport, approached the plane in the previously mentioned unmarked Seattle Police Department vehicle.
---
The flight stairs were positioned at the front door of the aircraft and [REDACTED] left the airplane and approached the car occupied by [REDACTED] where she picked up the money, parachutes, food, maps and radio for cockpit communication. DID HER OWN [guess: Free] MAPS
---
Just before [REDACTED] left the airplane for the first time, the hijacker got up from his seat with the attache case in his hands and went to one of the two lavatories just behind row 18. [illegible handwriting]
---
All communications between the hijacker and the cockpit were through [REDACTED] by use of the interphone or by the notes delivered to the cockpit by [REDACTED]. The flight crew at no time talked to or saw the hijacker.
---
The briefcase was described by the three stewardesses as being a dark brown or black inexpensive, imitation leather attache case or briefcase. Stewardess [REDACTED] said the briefcase measured about 12"x18".
---
[REDACTED] passenger, observed the hijacker as he left the rest room and she said he was carrying the briefcase on its side in both arms and observed a package on top of the briefcase, which was approximately 4" deep and about 2" shorter than the width of the attache case. [REDACTED] further described the package as light in color, possibly very light yellow with a light pink tinge.
---
[illegible] D/5/31 [illegible] 4/1/47
---
b6 b7C
---
DB Cooper-7058
---
- 11 -
SE 164-81
---
[REDACTED] described the package merely as a small green package.
When [REDACTED] returned to the airplane, she brought the money in a white canvas bag and placed it on the seat, (18-D), next to the hijacker who immediately examined it and told her the passengers could leave.
All of the passengers at that point did deplane but the cockpit crew and the three stewardesses remained on board, per instructions of the hijacker.
[REDACTED] then left the airplane for a second time and brought back one back parachute. At this time the hijacker told her to lower all the window shades in his section of the aircraft.
[REDACTED] then left the airplane again and returned with the two chest parachutes and made an additional trip to bring in the other back parachutes. She also gave the hijacker a sheet of instructions on how to use the parachutes, but he told her he did not need it.
[REDACTED] advised that when she returned with the second back parachute, the hijacker was cutting open one of the chest parachutes with a pocketknife and cut some of the nylon cords. He then took the nylon cord, wrapped it around the neck of the money bag numerous times and then wrapped it a few times from top to bottom. With the same piece of nylon, he then made a loop-like handle at the top.
By this time, only the money and parachutes had been brought on board. [REDACTED] then asked the hijacker if she should go out and get the maps, food and radio, to which he replied in the affirmative. She then went out and brought back the above items. It is noted that all of the crew was still on board at that time.
At some time after the passengers had deplaned and before the stewardesses left, the hijacker was observed strapping on one of the back packs.
Up to this time the hijacker had given no indication of their ultimate destination, but after the passengers had left the plane and the money and parachutes brought on, he told [REDACTED] when she asked what their future destination would be, not to worry; that the plane was not going to Havanna, but it would go to a
---
DB Cooper-7059
---
[guess: (1) ist no. [illegible] 12 [illegible]]
---
b6 b7C
SE 164-81
---
"pleasant place." [REDACTED] said she then obtained a pay sheet and took down the following instructions from the hijacker:
"We're going to Mexico City - or any place in Mexico - nonstop - gear down - flaps down - you can trim the flaps to 15, you can stop anywhere in Mexico to refuel but nowhere in the United States. The aft door must be open and the stairs down. The altitude under 10,000 feet, they know they can't go over that. Cabin lights out and everyone is to be forward of the First Class Curtain."
---
[guess: CW'S] [guess: LOANED] MEXICO A PLEASANT PLACE [illegible] is his [guess: view] [guess: SCANNING] OF AIRPLANES
---
DEF [guess: INDICATES] [illegible] [guess: Mr. knows] [illegible] [guess: TRAINING] & [guess: POSSIBLE]
---
When it was explained to the hijacker that the plane could not take off with the air stairs down, he supposedly said in a low tone,
"Yes they can but the cockpit can put it down after they get airborne."
---
CAN THEY OR THEY NO.
---
These instructions were then given to the pilot. The above note written by [REDACTED] was then returned to the hijacker.
The stewardesses, [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] were then allowed to leave the plane.
The hijacker became upset because of the long delay on the ground and she told him it would be a few minutes longer while they filed a flight plan, to which he said,
---
b6 b7C
---
- 13 - DB Cooper-7060
SE 164-81
---
"Never mind. They can do that over the radio once they get up. Let's get the show on the road."
[REDACTED] said that just before the engines were started, she opened the aft door and locked it open and as the plane was taxiing toward the runway, she told the hijacker that they had oxygen and he said,
"Yes, I know where it is and if I need it, I will get it."
She asked him to cut some of the parachute cord to use as a safety line when she opened the air stairs but the hijacker said,
"Never mind," that he would do it. She showed him where the controls for the air stairs were and how to operate them and thought later, that this was the only function of the aircraft which he did not seem to be fully aware of. As a matter of fact, she noted that his conduct during the flight indicated to her that he had an extensive technical knowledge of that particular type aircraft and perhaps aircraft and flying in general.
---
[guess: Dfec] [guess: Know] 727 b6 b7C
---
[REDACTED] then returned to seat 18-C; the hijacker to 18-E; the money being on 18-D and the bomb on 18-F.
Approximately four minutes after take-off, the hijacker stood up and told her to go to the cockpit; to close the First Class Curtains and have no one come out from behind the curtains. The lights were out in the rear compartment. She went forward into the First Class Section and as she pulled the curtains, she turned and saw the hijacker for the last time and noticed that he had a nylon cord tied around his waist and standing in the aisle. As
---
- 14 - DB Cooper-7061
SE 164-81
---
she faced him, she pleaded with him to take the bomb with him and he said he would take it with him or disarm it before he left.
While waiting on the ground at Sea-Tac for the parachutes, the hijacker became annoyed and [REDACTED] told him the parachutes were coming from McChord. The hi- jacker then said, "McChord is only 20 minutes from Tacoma; it doesn't take that long." [REDACTED] also noted that while they were in the holding pattern over Sea-Tac, the hijacker looked out the window and observed: [handwritten: p.12] "We're over Tacoma now!"
[REDACTED] said there had been no announcement by anyone as to where they were.
The plane departed Sea-Tac at 7:36 PM. Some four or five minutes after take-off, [REDACTED] was [REDACTED] sent to the cockpit by the hijacker. Some 10 minutes [REDACTED] after she entered the cockpit, one of the officers received a call on the interphone from the hijacker, advising he could not get the air stairs down. The pilot then [REDACTED] leveled off the aircraft and reduced the air speed. Within a very short time, the officer's panel showed that the stairs had been lowered and approximately five minutes later, [REDACTED] (8:05 PM), the officer contacted the hijacker who said everything was okay. That was the last communication with the hijacker.
At 8:11 PM, while the plane was at 10,000 feet, the crew experienced a pressure bump or oscillation and the Cabin Pressure Rate of Change Gauge also reacted violently and it was thought, at that time, that the hijacker might have left the aircraft.
When the plane landed at Reno, at 11:01 PM, PST, it was parked away from the terminal. After receiving no answer through their attempts to communicate with the hijacker, they went into the cabin, flipped on the lights but saw no one.
---
b6 b7C b6 b7C [handwritten: p.12] [various marginal annotations, partially illegible]
---
- 15 - DB Cooper-7062
Serials: SE 164-81