FLYJACK

FBI closing, not closing the Cooper case.. If you listen to the words, the case isn't closed.. they have just given up unless something gets presented to them... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56f3ijuanTQ

Himmelsbach... so, where did he get this from? "Himmelsbach thinks other clues to Cooper being an ex-convict were the 'atrocious foul language' he used in talking to a stewardess and the way he smoked his cigarettes. Cooper was a heavy smoker and was indifferent to the fact that the smoke curled through his fingers and left nicotine stains, a trait Himmelsbach said is common among prison inmates." https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/11/22/Folk-hero-to-some-sleazy-rotten-crook-to-others/7021533019600/

I took KK5-1 and added that square section for the mouth and the hair on top, not the forehead.... and the clothes.. The FBI made more tweaks but you can see how similar it is to the final sketch B. I am working on some alternate versions,, it is amazing how changing one thing slightly changes the overall look.

He hated the idea that Cooper was becoming a folk hero and pushed a counter narrative,, he must have taken the failure to solve case personally. The smoke around the fingers was attributed to Cooper by Himmelsbach elsewhere, probably embellished based on the FBI file about stains on the right hand..

It is odd, I remember an interview where Himmelsbach said smoke curled through his (Cooper's) fingers like an ex-con.. same deal.. was he drawing the comparison or conflating the two..

Himmelsbach.. on the sketches, a compromise. "Page 82 There always had been some problems with the artist’s rendering of Cooper we had released. It was the best that could be produced under the circumstances, but witnesses differed in their views, and at best it was a compromise. I remembered a case where the teller who was the victim of a bank robbery had said with great assurance that the robber was wearing a blue baseball cap. When we looked at the bank’s film, it was a paisley golf hat with a pork-pie brim! And she had been so sure! That was the problem we had with the composite of Cooper. In fact, we had three composites of Cooper, all based on eye-witness reports."

Himmelsbach book... "Page 37 (Overleaf:) The flight of the hijacked jet south from Seattle, as tracked by the FAA, was basically along flight path Victor 23. However, authorities have since come to the conclusion that the airplane was east of this track, a fact confirmed recently by the aircraft's co-pilot. " Suggests Cooper is right handed, held case in left paid with right. "Page 13 Cooper indicated the attache case he held in his left hand, a case similar to that which many businessmen carried aboard aircraft in Portland that Thanksgiving eve. He pushed the $20 bill toward Agent Lysne."

Without glasses, I made this with KK5-1 and hair and mouth changed.. Sketch B is 100% based on KK5-1 as confirmed in the FBI docs. Sketch B based on KK5-1.. (with changes from witnesses)

He wasn't Cooper, not even close.. "steel blue eyes" was never mentioned by Nicky B..

Hancock.. "an excellent likeness" but suggested some changes.. This was an early iteration she was commenting on, not the final.

They tweaked over many months with input from witnesses.

FBI files say right hand.

It is. They started with sketch B and incorporated witness input, tweaked the hair and mouth area etc... I created this from sketch B.. FBI files admit sketch B was based on KK5-1 because it is.

Himmelsbach book says... cig stains on fingers.. (FBI files say on right hand) "Page 54 Tina’s answers were relayed to waiting agents in Portland and Seattle, who now knew that what they had hoped to be a quick-closing case had turned dramatically in favor of Cooper. A profile of the skyjacker, based on the information furnished by witnesses, described a “middle-aged” Caucasian of dark complexion; dark piercing eyes; dark brown hair, of medium length — a businessman’s cut; about 6 feet tall, with a wiry, athletic build; a heavy smoker, who held the cigarette enough so that his fingers were stained; no obvious marks, scars or tatoos. Cooper was dressed in a dark business suit, with a white shirt." "Page 123 One of those boys, the woman said, later went into military service, and after his discharge went through several marriages. She described him as the kind of man who took advantage of women: faithless, he would live off women, use them. His language was coarse, and he was a smoker, a heavy smoker, whose fingers were stained from the curling vapors. He had slender facial features, brown hair, a dark complexion, nearly black, piercing eyes." "Page 14 cigarettes, looking out the window while waiting for Northwest Airlines Flight 305 to arrive. The flight had originated on the east coast, with stops including Minneapolis and Spokane. It was one of the flights referred to by crews as a milk run. Now it was a bit late getting into Portland. Cooper checked his watch frequently, and felt increasing impatience that boarding might be delayed. Once more he went to the pocket of his white shirt and the pack of Raleigh filter tips. He removed the pack from his pocket, and with slight, jerking motions, flipped a butt far enough out of the pack to grasp it with his lips. The match reflected in the large sunglasses as he touched it to the tip of the cigarette." "Page 48 Flight 305 turned southeast at Red Bluff, California, for the final leg of the flight in to Reno. Pilots Scott and Radaczak had flown the airplane by hand the entire trip from Seattle, not wanting to put the craft on automatic pilot. Now, with less than an hour remaining before landing at Reno, they tried once again to make contact with the hijacker." "Page 102 “T still believe, and will ‘till my dying day, that his wife was involved with him. I lived that guy. I did years of research about the case before investing my time and money. I believe you have to give the guy credit for some intelligence. You don’t just go down and hijack an airplane, bail out near a freeway without some coordinates lined up — a drop point, so that you can get out of the airplane at a certain point. You’ve got to expect that someone was waiting for him. I believe he was planning to land near Lake Merwin. In fact, I believe he planned to land at Speelyai Bay, where we used to launch the submarine, but the pilot didn’t fly the course that Cooper wanted him to fly. The pilot was hedging on the course, and flying close to the freeway, so that if the thing did go haywire he could get help if he had to crash the airplane."

I really don't understand why Edwards keeps getting this wrong.. Sketch B was not a single sketch, it was a process with witness input that started with KK5-1 and ended with the final sketch B. Tina rejected the first iteration but agreed with the final one with everybody else.. Edwards completely rejects sketch B based on two errors. Tina rejected the first iteration vs sketch A but did accept the final iteration of sketch B. (Tina also misled and said she didn't see Cooper face) KK5-1 was and is the basis for sketch B, it is stated in the FBI files and I have done extensive analysis building a sketch from KK5-1 that closely matches the final sketch B.. Sketch B is based on KK5-1.

Must have been published, it is cited in 1980 by the Seattle Times,, maybe the date is wrong.

It is in the FBI files part 43 p 172 also talk about here..

There was the famous Quantas bomb hoax in Australia... May 1971.. it is in the FBI files as well.. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-23/qantas-bomb-hoax-1971-the-great-plane-robbery-australia/10807510 These things may not be exact copies but a logical advancement... Cini..

The very thing that has frustrated the Cooper investigation for 50+ years also attracts people to this mystery.. That is, we have very few 100% facts, try listing them. This case is the ultimate bayesian example. We take a few facts, some conflicting and lots of inferential info and try to reconstruct the crime, it is a fascinating intellectual challenge where we as individuals utilize our own unique experiences, history, education, logic and reason. The Cooper case is the ultimate intellectual puzzle challenge.. a test of our own minds.. The problem is there may not be a 100% provable conclusion.. without forensics.. so, we do the best we can with what we have and that includes consistently re-examining the evidence and exploring new theories that fit within the information we have. It is like having a 10,000 piece picture puzzle with 300 confirmed pieces and only 1,000 more pieces that may or may not even belong to that puzzle.. We try to put enough pieces together to establish the full picture... lots of pieces fit that may not even belong..

Yes, it is a single data point.. If I remember the case, not all the money was passed. But, what is interesting is that it wasn't caught on the first transaction by the extortionist... If bills get initially passed they still circulate over and over for years.. The Cooper bill serial numbers were entered into the NCIC database..

This is interesting, there was an airplane extortion for $25,000 claiming a bomb would go off if a plane dropped below 10,000 ft. The plane was Seattle bound and the extortion in $20's was paid in Anchorage. The guy got caught in Portland when a bill showed up in a bank. That bill was tracked back to a German mechanic in Portland.. I had researched this case before and know that the rest of the money was not recovered. but, it is a case of a marked bill being caught by a bank.. within 5 weeks of the ransom and found in Portland while paid in Anchorage..

anybody ever find this,, first big spread on Cooper LA Times West Magazine March 19, 1972

No it isn't, they are trying to depict a slightly pouty protruding lower lip in the sketches, very tough to do, heavier than the top lip but not heavy or fat.

Flo noted "thin lips" in Gray interview. I just took exception with the "fat lip" description.

yes, thicker in the middle, the first Cooper description said thin lips,,,