DB Cooper: What happened during infamous plane hijacking?

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday

Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US

Please enter a valid email address

Please enter a valid email address

SIGN UP

I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

It has been 50 years since a man known as DB Cooper hijacked a plane on a domestic flight in the US, stole hundreds of thousands of dollars, and disappeared forever.

The hijacking took place on 24 November 1971, when a man bought a ticket from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington, using cash. He identified himself as Dan Cooper, which we now know was a pseudonym.

Once on board, Cooper handed a stewardess a note stating that he had a bomb. The hijacker then demanded $200,000 (which would amount to $1.3m nowadays) in $20.

On the plane were 32 passengers, three flight attendants – including Tina Mucklow, who shared her recollection of the hijacking in an interview with The Independent – and three pilots.

While people on the ground worked to assemble Cooper’s money, Mucklow and her coworkers worked to ensure the safety of the passengers.

The plane landed a first time in Seattle, where Mucklow was sent out to collect the money. Cooper agreed to release the passengers and two flight attendants, then the plane took off again with Mucklow, the three pilots, and the hijacker on board.

Cooper, equipped with a parachute, jumped out of the airplane and was never seen again. The aircraft then landed safely in Reno, Nevada.

Despite an investigation by the FBI, Cooper has never been identified or found. The biggest discovery in the case came in 1980, when a boy digging on a beach near the Columbia River found almost $6,000 in bank notes with serial numbers matching the cash given to Cooper on the day of the hijacking.

The FBI announced in 2016 that it has now “redirected resources allocated to the DB Cooper case in order to focus on other investigative priorities”.

While the FBI has said it will no longer actively investigate the case, should anyone find Cooper’s parachutes or his cash, they are asked to get in touch with their local FBI field office.