FLYJACK

That isn't what I see at all, the call was 5 - 10 minutes later which is corroborated by the suburbs of Portland statement. He is estimating the time of the call to Soderlind (5-10 min later)(shortly after the jump) then he says the exact call time should be logged. Clearly the the context is the time of call not the jump. 8:15 is roughly Battleground.. Elsewhere they used oscillations within 5-10 minutes from 8:05 because the call to Soderlind was the parameter until they examined all the comms. If the jump was at 8:10-12 ish as later determined it all matches up.. Rataczak also believed Cooper jumped 25 miles North of Portland

To pinpoint Cooper's jump, Rataczak is using a parameter between the last contact at 8:05 and the call to Soderlind. 5-10 minutes later in the suburbs of Portland. The call to Soderlind was after the jump and he believed time stamped so it does make sense as a parameter. I think the company log he is referring to is his comms patch to Soderlind at NWA,, we don't have that log but we know Soderlind was listening in and taking notes. 8:05 plus 10 minutes = 8:15,, that is the suburbs of Portland.

More than that, there is no baseline for the time on that tape.. that time is precise to the minute to that particular tape but how precise is the tape time. Rataszcak was explaining the time Cooper departed and that Cooper jumped between two parameters.. The last contact with Cooper at 8:05 and the Soderlind call 5 or 10 minutes later.. (8:10 - 8:15) in the suburbs of Portland. The exact time would be recorded in the company log... they had not yet reached Portland..

Precise to the minute time on that particular tape, not seconds... and the time may not be exactly correct. Comparing these timestamps is like herding cats.. they use different devices and recording methods, they are not synchronized with each other. How do you get an oscillation report at 8:10.. the timing device isn't precisely set or rounding to the minute. No way any of these times can be taken as "precise" to actual world atomic clock time. Ratazcak said he contacted Soderlind in the suburbs of Portland.. 5-10 minutes after the oscillations/bump..

Those times are not precise,, they are obviously rounded or concatenated to the minute and from different recording sources/methods.. The oscillation reports range from 8:10-8:13... The timestamp is after the event is experienced and communicated. So, you have a slight error in the reporting times and a 1 minute error on the map,, this compounds the timing error. Oscillations were pressure fluctuations visually seen by the rapid increase in needle movement on the gauge,, the bump was felt during an extreme pressure fluctuation. The time was brief. Other pilots with 727 jumpers also felt the pressure bump. Soderlind was contacted (5-10 min later) while 305 was in the suburbs of Portland according to Rataczak. Soderlind was taking notes the entire time but we don't have them. So, now put the 8:09/10 FDR "little bob" in context.. if that was Rataczak correcting due to the pitch caused by Cooper now at the bottom of the stairs,, Cooper jumps in under 2-3 minutes..

Not really an argument,,, a discussion. This is the nature of this crazy case, we have overwhelming uncertainties, actually very few hard facts.. We all evaluate the information through our own experiences, history and logic to make sense of it.. that is why I said I am at 90% confidence,, Hearing different views and info can make your own view stronger or change it.. This is my evaluation,, if Rataczak did or didn't ask ATC to mark their radar,,, the timeline would be the same. It isn't pertinent. I believe Cooper jumped between the Lewis R and roughly Battleground with the highest probability right in between,, diminishing as you go north or south.

The date doesn't make it false. Rataczak is quoted.. He re-iterated in the (1996) video and later. So, it is 100% not a media error. The FBI 302 is the strongest evidence against however it is not Ratazcak speaking but an agent taking notes then having them written up later.. essentially hearsay. He could have been referring to the crew pinpointing their location at the time of the bump/oscillation.. not ATC marking it.

This was 1996.. Rataczak was flying and contacted ATC... There was a gap in the ATC transcripts due to the frequency error.

I should clarify, this video was in a 1996 news broadcast.. The clip of Rataczak was undated and could have been from earlier, he retired in 1999. His wife passed away last November.. http://pcnflightwest.blogspot.com/2022/11/judy-rataczak-wife-of-nwa-capt-bill.html

Right, Spangler did it manually with an error of 1 mile, then later a computer was used with an accuracy of 0.5 mile..

Sage doesn't use GEOREF as a primary system, it tracks flying objects.. in 3 dimensional space.. extremely accurate. GEOREF is a ground locating system with only lat/long... 2 dimensions on ground and less accurate. So, the Sage data had to be converted to GEOREF (ground) at some point to mark a map. https://code7700.com/pdfs/usaf/afm_51-40_navigation.pdf https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/FST-2_for_SAGE_p156-Ogletree.pdf https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CasteelSageRecollections.html

Remember, Cooper couldn't get the stairs down and Rataczak had to slow the plane,, After the lever was pushed.. they didn't drop for two reasons.. they were being held up by wind and they weren't operated properly by Cooper via the lever.. There is a gravity drop and a hydraulic assist mode.. We assume he only used the gravity drop because the light went on but he complained he was having trouble.. the stairs would not have opened or just barely.. I am saying that the stairs were at best 10% deployed if that.. until Cooper went down to the end at 8:09/10... that caused the pitch which caused Rataczak to adjust. I don't know if a change in pitch alone is detected on the FDR,, it may be due to a corresponding change in altitude or an adjustment by Rataczak.. But the argument discrediting only one little bob while bouncing around being hand flown doesn't make sense.. Why only one, if it was on autopilot you have the same issue.. we were told of that one because of the timing. Clearly, the "little bob" on the FDR is too vague for us to draw conclusions about its origin. Soderlind doesn't tell us what parameter the " little bob" was, he falsely assumed it was an adjustment by the autopilot, that tells me that the same "bob" would occur if a pilot adjusts. We do know that it did occur at 8:09/10 right before Cooper's presumed jump and the plane was being hand flown.. for all we know there may have been other's earlier,, or just this one was unique somehow. IMO, Soderlind picked it out for the timing.. As for Scott, aren't there two controls but one designated pilot.... he would have had his hands on the controls as well. I think it is a really big lift to discredit Rataczak... and convict him of lying. You need more proof. People do make memory errors and embellishments over time but hand flying the plane vs auto or Scott and telling ATC "he took leave of us" are not typical memory errors but serious lies.. that isn't Rataczak.. Based on my analysis, I am 90% confident on this scenario and I haven't seen any evidence that changes that.. nobody has to agree with me. If there is some more evidence I will evaluate it. We have a 1 mile and 1 minute room for error in that map... IMO, that is as close as we can get to the jump time scenario.

Sure, but the stairs didn't go down "fully" until 8:09/10.. The stairs were down because Cooper was at the bottom.. the stairs didn't drop without Cooper on them. that is the point,,, the light going on at 7:42 does not indicate stairs were down.. only that the lever was moved from the up detent. Stairs went down because Cooper went to the bottom which caused a slight pitch which caused Rataczak to adjust.. the "bob" was either the change in pitch or the adjustment by Rataczak. Rataczak had to be hand flying the plane.. not only did he say so but think about the situation.. The plane is flying low altitude, slow, gear down, flaps down.. in an emergency situation with a potential bomb on board,, it was flown around Portland. You aren't going to fly auto pilot in such a dirty configuration. Rataczak even slowed down the plane before Cooper jumped.

When Cooper is on the end of the stairs,, as far down as will go under his weight vs the wind (not fully down and locked) this caused the slight pitch which was felt by Rataczak.. The little bob could be that change in pitch or Rataczak hand correcting...

Yes, that is what I was referring to.. Remember, the stair light came on at 7:42,, Cooper released the lock..the light comes on when the lever is moved from the up position not when the stairs open... but they didn't drop... or very very slightly.... until 8:09 when he went to the bottom of the stairs. IMO, Cooper at the bottom of the stairs causing the pitch was the 8:09/10 "little bob" measured on the FDR. Soderlind's assumption is irrelevant. Then Cooper is at the bottom of the stairs for several minutes until he jumps.. at 8:12 + or - a minute. I found this for a NORJAK era 727 FDR.. Altitude, Heading, Vertical Acceleration. Notice it says heading..... aka flightpath

That is another issue,, I did an analysis for all the times vs distances between plots and found no speed anomaly over the average,, that means that the missing timestamp is irrelevant. It isn't really missing. It is the imprecision in the plots that caused a missing time not an error. If a time plot were completely missing the speed would be messed up. The distance between plots is not equidistant based on speed as you'd expect, or be very close, it isn't. That means those time plots are not precise but have a variation. A rounding off,, clearly they don't include the seconds. However they were converted to draw this map, they were rounded to the minute. The 8:04 plot just got lost in the conversion rounding process... the times after are not out by a minute less. Regardless, I have always used a 1 minute error for that map.

Makes sense to me.. he found a "little bob" that wasn't the autopilot because it wasn't on. He thought it was due to his belief it was on autopilot. The FDR does not distinguish the "little bob" as autopilot kicking in, Soderlind was assuming because he thought it was on autopilot and the crew wouldn't feel it. I am sure it is in there, look for degrees, maybe 3 degrees.. or something like that. I don't have time right now to scan the vid.. will look later.

I don't subscribe to that theory.. The times are radar sweeps that are rounded to the minute.. the missing time isn't really missing, it is a rounding anomaly. I did an analysis of all the timing marks and distances and they all average out. In other words, the times are correct to within a 1 minute error.. the 8:04 is missing due to rounding not that the times were recorded wrong from then on.

Soderlind said on autpilot the crew wouldn't feel the "little bob".. It wasn't on autopilot. IMO, the "little bob" was Cooper arriving at the end of the stairs.. causing the plane to pitch slightly. I believe Rataczak said the plane pitched in the NWA presentation.. He also said that Cooper "took leave" about 25 miles North of Portland,, same phrasing as in newspaper article.

Railroad,, I already answered.

I just grabbed a random map in my file.. But, 8:10 is at the 2010 mark.. 8:11 is at 2011,, 2009 is further North I think this is correct.

Rataczak said he was hand flying the plane.. and he felt Cooper and the plane pitch slightly. Soderlind said the "little bob" wouldn't be felt on autopilot.. The point is it was on the FDR,, that was most likely when Cooper was at the bottom of the stairs as extended as they could be. Rataczak adjusted the pitch. In 1996, Rataszak said he told ATC the hijacker took leave.. didn't mention shrimp boats but he did indicate that he thought cooper might have jumped aka "took leave". "Shrimp boats" could have been an embellishment but he has said he told ATC Cooper took leave. There is a newspaper article from even earlier that uses "took leave" phrase as well. I take his comment about not marking the location as they didn't mark the location themselves... 1996.. I have no reason to doubt this. Rataczakleave1996.mov EDIT<<< Here Nov 26 1971... hijacker "took leave" of us 25 miles north of here (Portland)

Railroad.

After analyzing all available evidence,, my view with 90% confidence.. 7:42 air stairs unlocked/released but not dropping. Cooper complains he can't get stairs down, pilot slows down plane. 8:05 Last comm with Cooper over interphone.. everything OK. 8:09-10 little bob on FDR, is Cooper at end of stairs causing adjustment. Rataczak hand flying plane feels Cooper on stairs and plane dip. 8:12 +/- 1 minute depending on timing device, Cooper leaves the plane. Crew sees oscillations become rapidly increase on gauge culminating in an extreme oscillation felt as the "pressure bump". Rataczak says “mark your shrimp boat”, not caught on tape due to wrong frequency. 5-10 minutes later. About 8:16-17 Rataczak calls Soderlind over the suburbs of Portland. They had not reached Portland. DZ.. The W/SW wind used by the FBI was an estimate, the wind was shifting between SW and SE in the area.. there is NO accurate wind data for Cooper's place and time of the jump. Therefore, the drift could have been slightly East or West of the flightpath. The map we have is accurate to 1 mile. The FBI searched on the East side.

Both had redactions, both use the term Pertaining to...