Seattle NORJAK report sections: first skyjacking utilizing parachutes, Calgary/Air Canada correlations, SR-71 flight, attache case
This copy: Part 78 pp. 281–288Also filed at Part 41 pp. 60–67 (primary) · Part 60 pp. 335–342 · Part 76 pp. 114–119
This copy’s own title
Seattle report SE 164-81 re first skyjacking using parachutes, Calgary correlations, SR-71 flights and attache case
Another copy of this document is the primary, most legible copy: Part 41 pp. 60–67.
Copies may differ in what was redacted.
Part of: Seattle report re NORJAK: air/ground and terrain searches, current investigation (SE 164-81)
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Id: Cooper-Part-78:281-288
Subject: Cooper Files: Cooper-Part-78:281-288 Document: Seattle report SE 164-81 re first skyjacking using parachutes, Calgary correlations, SR-71 flights and attache case Id: Cooper-Part-78:281-288 Page: https://cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-78%3A281-288 What is wrong (title, date, type, which pages belong together, copies)? What does the scan show?
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FBI 164-81, Vault Part 78 pp. 281–288 (DB Cooper-34153–34160), Report — cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-78%3A281-288
SE 164-81
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FIRST SKYJACKING UTILIZING PARACHUTES
In an effort to determine the origin of the D.B. COOPER hijacking (i.e. the original idea behind the skyjack plan), a review was conducted of the magazine and newspaper articles written just prior to NORJAK.
The below quoted newspaper article described the first known skyjacking in which a parachute was used by the skyjacker.
The Seattle Times, November 13, 1971:
"Calgary, Alberta - (UPI) - A masked hyjacker carrying more than 40 pounds of dynamite was knocked un- conscious today by an Air Canada crewman wielding a fire ax. The crewman's action 3,000 feet in the air ended a six- hour hijacking which skipped back and forth over the United States - Canadian border.
"The hijacker, reported in fair condition today with a possible skull fracture, was putting on a parachute to bail out of the DC8 over Calgary when he was struck by the ax.
"The hijacker, carrying a shotgun in addition to the dynamite, took control last night of the Calgary to Montreal flight carrying 123 persons. Claiming to be a member of the Irish Republican Army, the man demanded $1.5 million and a free passage to Ireland. (A touring I.R.A. spokesman denied that the hijacker belonged to the I.R.A.)
"After landing in Great Falls, Montana, the man accepted $50,000 ransom. The plane took off, landed again at Great Falls, and the man let the passengers to unharmed. But, he ordered the plane with its five-member crew to take off again. Indecision on the part of the hijacker led the plane back and forth across the border before he ap- parently decided to jump.
"An Air Canada official said that as the hijacker was preparing to jump, the pilot, [REDACTED]
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[illegible] ...hijacker...
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jumped him and [illegible] came up behind him and 'let him .. have it with a fire ax.'
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"Flight 812 made its first landing at Great Falls after the hijacker had taken over 40 miles west of Winnipeg, Manitoba. There it was refueled and the $50,000 was handed to the hijacker by a policewoman. The money was raised by bankers as the plane circled the city for two hours.
"The plane then took off for a scheduled stop in Regina, Saskatchewan, to let the 114 passengers aboard disembark. The plane did not land in Regina, however, but turned back and set down in Great Falls again where the passengers and three of the nine crew members were set free.
"On its second take-off from Great Falls, Air Canada officials said the hijacker wanted to be taken to New York City before proceeding to Ireland. The man, des- cribed as 5-feet-7, dark-haired and in his 30's then decided he wanted to go to Phoenix, Arizona, but finally settled for Calgary.
"At Great Falls Airport, Gov. FORREST ANDERSON and hundreds of onlookers stood by. ANDERSON said he came to persuade the hijacker to surrender or at least release the passengers. He never saw the hijacker, however,"
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The Seattle Post Intelligencer
"Calgary, Alta. - (UPI) - A masked man armed with a sawed-off shotgun and dynamite who could not make up his mind where he anted to go was knocked out by a crew member early today to end a bizarre hijacking flight on an Air Canada DC 8.
"The hijacker was captured when a crew member struck him with a fire ax as the man was bending over to put on a parachute he was carrying, Air Canada said. A local hospital reported the hijacker suffered lacerations on his head.
"The plane - originally bound from Vancouver, B.C. to Montreal - was commandeered with 127 persons aboard.
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"It had flown back and forth between Canada and the United States at the orders of the hijacker who at first said he wanted to go to Ireland. He claimed to belong to the Irish Republican Army (IRA).
"The passengers were released on the second of two stops the hijacked plane made at Great Falls, Mont.
"Just before landing here [REDACTED] of the four- engine jet radioed that the hijacker was unconscious, Air Canada officials said. [REDACTED], however, called for bomb disposal experts to stand by.
"Right after landing in Calgary the man was whisked away by ambulance.
"Earlier the man had extracted $50,000 ransom for the release of the passengers and most of the crew dur- ing the second time it landed at Great Falls.
"'The guy was wearing a mask and holding what appeared to be dynamite and a sawed-off shotgun,' an Air Canada spokesman said in Montreal.
"The hijacker first demanded $1.5 million ransom and a flight to Ireland. After hijacking the plane fol- lowing a stop here, he ordered it to Great Falls where a policewoman carried two suitcases with $50,000 to the cock- pit and they were raised by a rope [REDACTED]
"The hijacker then ordered the plane to fly to Regina, Sask., where he said the passengers would be released, but after a half hour, the plane returned to Great Falls and the passengers were released there.
"While the plane was on the ground in Great Falls, an unidentified FBI agent tried unsuccessfully to talk the hijacker into giving up. The plane took on 130,000 gallons of fuel at Great Falls for the possible flight to Ireland.
"The plane took off for a second time with the [REDACTED], filing a flight plan for Phoenix, Ariz. But later the DC8 made a midcourse change and the plane headed for Calgary.
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"Five crewmen, including a stewardess, remained on the plane.
"The passengers were taken by police van from the plane to the air terminal. Officers refused to let newsmen talk with them.
"Police said the hijacker warned the passengers not to talk about what happened on the four-engine aircraft or he would kill the crew. Officers said he had a transistor radio and was listening to local newscasts while the plane was on the ground.
"One passenger, a young woman, appeared distraught and was placed in a wheelchair after she was helped out of the plane.
"Stewardess [REDACTED] told officials none of the passengers was aware of the hijack until the plane made its first landing here.
"Policewoman [REDACTED] brought the money to the hijacker. She said the money was provided by the First Westside National Bank of Great Falls. She refused to dis- close who ordered the payment of the ransom.
[REDACTED] an IRA representative touring Western Canada, told a Great Falls television newsman that his or- ganization abhorred hijackings and disavowed the current attempt.
"The plane landed at Great Falls International Airport, and the man gave [REDACTED] 15 minutes to refuel and obtain the money. [REDACTED] was ordered to circle the airport until the money was brought to the facility, about 100 miles south of the Canadian border.
"The plane was carrying 115 paid passengers, three airline employees and a crew of nine."
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CORRELATIONS
CALGARY COOPER
Ransom $50,000 $200,000
Plane DC 8 Boeing 727
Weapons Dynamite/shotgun Dynamite
Mistakes Indecision, crew None (Note: Cleared apprehended while plane prior to donning donning parachute parachute)
Modus Let passengers go Let passengers go after Operandi after receiving receiving ransom. First ransom. Suggested suggested Mexico, crew New York City then countered with San Francisco, Ireland then decided hijacker suggested Phoenix, on Phoenix, Arizona, Arizona, crew countered with but finally settled Yuma or Reno, he chose Reno. for Calgary.
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Since this skyjacking was given a great deal of publicity at the time, it is felt Unsub may have used this event to help him formulate his own skyjacking plans.
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SR 71 FLIGHT
U.S. AIR FORCE SR-71 AIRCRAFT
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By communication December 3, 1971, the Sacramento Di- vision advised that Beale Air Force Base, California, had offered, free of charge to the Bureau, use of an SR-71 air- craft to photograph terrain over which the hijacked airplane had flown on its trip to Reno.
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This aircraft was described as an extremely sophis- ticated aerial reconnaissance plane which would photograph a strip 20 miles wide with photographic resolution of detecting objects on the ground 2 feet square. The film strip would then be reviewed by trained and qualified U.S. Air Force personnel.
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By communication February 17, 1972 the Sacramento Di- vision advised that photographic over-flights using SR-71 aircraft were conducted on five separate occasions with no photographs obtained due to limited visibility from very high altitude. | | SR-71 Flights from Beale Air Force Base advised each such flight requires minimum of one week advance clearance with FAA due to sonic boom problem, specialized computer programming of aircraft, filing of flight plan and compliance with FAA requirements. Accordingly, weather on flight date cannot be accurately predicted. He stated no future flights over specific area where hijacker possibly exited could be scheduled since SR-71 aircraft committed for military missions.
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By communication, November 1, 1972, Seattle Division advised the Bureau and Norfolk that Unsub had in his possession, prior to the time he jumped, the following paraphernalia:
A. Parachute Pack Pack B. Parachute Chest Pack C. Briefcase or attache case D. Dark overcoat E. A 4x12x14 paper bag F. A pair of dark slip-on shoes G. Wrap-around sunglasses with dark rims H. 10,000 $20 bills
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Since none of the above was found when the plane was searched at Reno, Unsub must have taken them with him, or discarded some of them prior to jumping.
The above-described attache case supposedly contained a bomb. It is believed Unsub threw this attache case from the plane prior to his jumping, because of the numerous other items he had to carry. If he did throw it prior to jumping, it would fall almost directly in the path of the aircraft. The 727 air stairs were lowered sometime after 7:42 p.m. and Unsub jumped prior to 8:15 p.m. on November 24, 1971. The plane covered a distance of approximately 87 miles during this time.
The items could possibly be lodged in thickly wooded, mountainous terrain. The search area would cover a strip of land approximately 87 miles long by one-half mile wide. It has been suggested that infrared photography might possibly indicate non-living material, such as an attache case, in a darker shade than living material, thereby enabling the case to be found using infrared high resolution photography.
Since Unsub possibly discarded the attache case prior to jumping, he could not have buried or hidden it. The case would have dropped directly in the flight path of the plane and could possibly be visible from the air. The length of time Unsub would have to throw the case or any other time is limited to 33 minutes, and therefore the area covered is relatively small when compared to the entire flight path.
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By communication November 9, 1972, the Norfolk Division advised that interviews were conducted with the following individuals assigned to the [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Langley Air Force Base, Virginia:
[REDACTED]
[REDACTED]
[REDACTED]
It was the consensus of opinion among the three individuals above, each of whom has had considerable experience
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with infrared imagery, that efforts to locate the attache case by this means would probably prove futile. The terrain, as described, would neutralize any effort, particularly if tall trees and mountains are part of its makeup. Further explained was the necessity for the presence of heat which would need to be generated by the object (attache case) in contrast to the surrounding terrain for successful infrared high resolution photography. The size of the attache case provides a poor target for any type of aerial photography, including visual photography.
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All three individuals interviewed continued to express their negative feelings as to the success of either of the aerial photography procedures in this particular instance.
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The Alexandria Division was requested to determine the feasibility of routing a visual aerial photography training mission over the area of interest. Alexandria advised by airtel dated February 8, 1973, that [REDACTED] [REDACTED] was contacted and he advised that he had made inquiry into this matter and stated that in the event Seattle wished to have military assistance in this matter then Seattle should request the Director to submit a letter of request to the Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Pentagon, Washington, D.C. 20301. In this letter the full particulars of the matter should be set forth as well as whether or not the Bureau or Department of Justice is willing to observe the additional cost if any to the Air Force. [REDACTED] advised that he could not state positively that the request would be granted, however, advised that it was his opinion that if this were to be a reimbursable project, that it would probably receive more favorable action. However, in any event, upon receipt of the letter a conference would be held within the appropriate military organization to ascertain the feasibility of such missions and the Bureau would be properly notified.
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In view of the above information no further request was made to have a visual aerial photography training mission at this time. Consideration may be given to this type of survey if new methods or monies become available.
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Serials: SE 164-81