Part 1, page 28

Transcript

The scan is the source; the transcript is machine-generated from it.

[...continued from previous page...] what to [guess: stash] [illegible] in the briefcase to pull the job [illegible] two cheap half-[illegible] cost [illegible] an altimeter, a compass, a stop-watch, a walkie-talkie, three small radio transmitters, black gloves, dark wrap-around sunglasses, a make-up kit, a foul weather jacket, a black cap. And a replica of a bomb - three red flares of the type police use to mark auto accidents, wired cleverly together and attached to what appeared to be a deto- nating device [illegible]. In the right-hand inside pocket of his dark business suit jacket, he carried

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[illegible] and make spotting him difficult [illegible] [illegible] when the bailout [illegible] couldn't afford to have it known exactly where he was jumping. Hence he needed inclement weather, but not rainy enough [illegible] [...] [illegible] could see the transmitter, and he [illegible] thinking about it, how about making [me] up a couple of these? So he did," Cooper said.

The tiny radio transmitters each had a small antenna and each emitted a 'beep' signal which could be picked up by a walkie-talkie tuned to the proper frequency. The transmitters were cru- cial to his plan.

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[Caption]: Fleming clandestinely interviewed D.B. Cooper outside Seattle.

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Karl Fleming was associated with Newsweek magazine as correspondent, Los Angeles bureau chief and contributing editor for 11 years before resigning April 15 to found LA. While with Newsweek, he covered virtually every significant civil rights story of the turbulent '60s, including Birming- ham, Selma, Ole Miss., Little Rock and Watts. He covered the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert and those of Martin Luther King and Medgar Evers. He was assigned to Richard Nixon during the last Presiden- tial campaign and has covered Lyndon Johnson, George Wallace, Hubert Hum- phrey, Barry Goldwater and Ronald Rea- gan. He also reported on the Charles Man- son and Jack Ruby trials for Newsweek and the trial of Pueblo spy ship captain Lloyd M. Bucher. Early this year, Fleming made contact with a man who claimed to be D. B. Cooper, the only person ever to skyjack an airliner and get away with his identity unknown. In this and the next two installments, Fleming tells what hap- pened.

Copyright 1972 Platypus Publications

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Cooper drove out and placed one of the transmitters in a weed patch near a rural church; he set another one in a ditch beside the road; he left the third one in the trunk of the car. The place- ment of the three transmitters formed a loose triangle, so that when he received the signal from all three of them on his walkie-talkie, he would know precisely where he was. "I figured I would be able in between the clouds, would be able to see the highway and the lights down there, but I wanted to have that 'beep, beep' signal in case anything went wrong," Cooper said.

A Little Satire

Cooper had made practice runs on the Portland-Seattle flight a half-dozen times, checking the terrain, checking the compass route, familiarizing him- self with landmarks and on the final checkride he had placed his small trans- mitters and had taken his walkie-talkie on board with him. Approaching the planned jump spot, he concealed the walkie-talkie in a pillow and held the pillow up to his ear. Sure enough, when he was over the right place - and could see where he was - the signals began to come in, demonstrating the system would work.

After setting them out on the day of the hijacking, Cooper returned to the post office lot, parked the car, walked

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